Subscribed to the bestseller list New York Times and several other renowned publications, American writer Kathy Reichs takes her readers on a thrilling investigation following an arson in her new novel, Crime in the Ashes. Its heroine, forensic anthropologist Tempe Brennan, quickly discovers that the fire of an old building in the Foggy Bottom district of Washington DC hides mysteries and violence. The investigation is difficult. The story is captivating.
“Crime in the Ashes,” the new novel by Kathy Reichs, takes place in the heart of Captain America.
© Editions Robert Laffont
Temperance Brennan had planned a romantic vacation with Ryan. Her plans suddenly changed after a call from the authorities: she must rush to Washington DC to analyze the remains of the victims of a fatal fire in the Foggy Bottom district. A neighborhood with a tumultuous past.
To carry out this delicate investigation, Tempe joins forces with a TV journalist from a rich family, Ivy Doyle. Together, they discover that the burned building had been the den of smugglers and traffickers in the 1930s and 1940s: the famous Foggy Bottom gang.
The anecdote took on a dimension of importance when the son of a gang member was shot and killed at his home, in a wealthy neighborhood of the American capital. Tempe sees all the colors and the suspense intensifies when she discovers that she is being followed.
A first
Reached in Charlotte, North Carolina, where she lives, Kathy Reichs confirms that this is the first time in the series that Tempe Brennan has investigated an arson.
“When I start a story, I try to think about the scientific aspects of forensic anthropology that I haven’t covered in my books. I talked about forensic entomology, all kinds of subjects, but not about fires.”
A solidly documented history
The case she describes in Crime in the Ashes is fictitious. But she documented herself well. “I go to the American Academy of Forensic Sciences meetings every year,” she reveals in an interview.
“One of the sections is about fires and arson: I attend the scientific presentations of the experts, I go to dinner with them, I go to have a drink with them at the bar and I listen to their stories.”
She said – correctly – that this subject would certainly interest her readers. “How do you determine how a fire was started? How can we see if there were traces of accelerant? What path did the fire follow? For what? And of course, what is the impact of fires on human bodies? What’s happening? Nothing good.”
Hard work
In the novel, readers will learn all this in detail. You have to have a strong heart, and the work of investigators and forensic anthropologists in such cases is arduous.
In the novel, the arson hides other crimes. “I haven’t personally worked on arsons, but fire victims have ended up in my lab. The bodies were so altered that a normal autopsy was impossible. The anthropologist – that is, me – had to find answers by examining the bones and teeth.”
This work is far from easy and the descriptions provided in the novel prove it. “The families are waiting for answers,” replies Kathy Reichs on this subject.
“When you lose a loved one in a building fire, you want to know what happened. I have already said in several interviews that I work with the dead and, in this case, with a dead person who has burned. But I work for the living, to provide answers to people who are alive, to families, to the court, to the police, to those who need these answers.
Crime in the Ashes
Kathy Reichs
Editions Robert Laffont
Environ 300 pages
- Kathy Reichs was born in Chicago.
- She is one of the few forensic anthropologists certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology.
- Her novels featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan have been translated into more than 30 languages.
- Kathy Reichs was also a producer on the hit TV series Bonescurrently streaming on Disney+.
- In 2019, she became an honorary member of the Order of Canada.
“Sergeant Burgos is here to brief you on the situation,” Thacker told me.
“The situation,” Burgos said to Thacker, pointedly ignoring me, “is that this shithole is still smoking and I have to go back.
– Of course. A brief summary will give the Dre Brennan an idea of the conditions to expect.
– What do you want to know? Burgos said with a sigh.
Having worked with equally hostile police officers, I recognized the signals. The man thought his time was too valuable to waste mentoring a science nerd.”
– Kathy Reichs, Crime in the AshesEditions Robert Laffont
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