Evil bones

#1 new york times bestselling author kathy reichs returns with a twisty, unputdownable thriller featuring iconic forensic anthropologist temperance brennan. of all the creatures in the world, only humans have the capacity for evil... small animals - a rat, a rabbit, a squirrel - have been turning up throughout charlotte, north carolina, mutilated and displayed in the same bizarre manner. but one day, as tempe is relaxing at home alongside her aimless, moody great-niece ruthie, she's diverted by a disturbing call. now, it seems, the perp is upping the ante. this find is larger. could the remains be human? tempe visits the scene and discovers that the victim is a dog. someone's pet. as someone who has always found animal cruelty deeply abhorrent, she vows to help apprehend the person responsible for the killings. with her layered knowledge of animal behaviour, ruthie becomes a valuable ally in the hunt for answers, as does semi-retired homicide detective erskine 'skinny' slidell, who is equally outraged and committed. needing a better understanding of possible motives, tempe and skinny seek input from a forensic psychologist, who has no definitive answer but offers several possibilities. the escalating pattern of aggression suggests even more macabre discoveries - and that the perp's focus may soon shift to humans. and then it happens. a woman is found disfigured and posed in a manner that mimics the earlier killings. as tempe and slidell follow the horrifying clues to a shocking conclusion, they find themselves force to confront an increasingly terrifying question. what is pure evil? praise for kathy reichs: 'this page-turning series never lets the reader down' harlan coben 'one of my favourite writers' karin slaughter 'kathy reichs and tempe brennan have thrilled readers with pacey, mazey tales . . . we readers are truly grateful' ian rankin