Old Bones (1987)

Anthropology professor and "Skeleton Detective" Gideon Oliver is participating in an international police conference in Brittany when he gets a chance to help investigate some old bones found in a cellar. The cellar belongs to a manoir, which belongs to an eminently dysfunctional extended family, one member of which is a young friend of Gideon's. The investigation points back to World War II and the death of a family member said to have been executed by the SS for Resistance activity. Before the satisfying conclusion there are many twists and turns and a heart-stopping and very dangerous situation for Gideon and his friends. There's also an offbeat love story and a setting that makes the reader want to hop on the next plane to France. The interactions of Gideon, his policeman friend John Lau, and the local Inspecteur Joly seem quite believable, and John offers comic relief. It might be interesting to read this side-by-side with another nominee from that year, Peter Lovesey's ROUGH CIDER, which also has a theme harking back to World War II, but in England. Highly recommended. ( )

I loathed the beginning, but really only because it was so well done. I was just so horrified--an old man struggling and trying to escape an incoming tide but no hope in sight! Gah!

But getting past that, the mystery was entertaining enough. It was fairly simply to figure out the "twist" (if it was supposed to be a twist) before the end but the journey to get there was interesting. ( )

A great mystery with surprises and believable characters from one of my favourite authors. It was first published in 1987 and it is still a great read!

On a technical note – I borrowed this book from my local library – the book was printed in 2006, but at least 10 of the pages were fuzzy and out of focus and difficult to read! This makes ebooks even more appealing... you don't have to worry about bad printing quality. ( )

Old Bones is the fourth in Elkins’ Gideon Oliver series. Gideon Oliver, the “Skeleton Detective of America,” is in France for a forensics conference when he gets called in to investigate a skeleton found buried in the cellar of a wealthy family. This is the second death to engulf the du Rocher family within a week. The patriarch of the family, Guillaume du Rocher, drowned during an incoming tide he couldn’t escape. In addition to determining the identity of the skeleton, Oliver is determined to solve the entire mystery. As events unfold, he is convinced that Guillaume’s death wasn’t an accident. There is a deeply held secret in the du Rocher family, and the answer lies in the old bones.

I haven’t read any of the previous Gideon Oliver mysteries, and Old Bones stands on its own. I found it engaging and humorous. It’s a great mystery, and the repartee between Oliver and his sidekick, FBI agent John Lau, made it a fun read. I won’t be sticking to most of the series I’ve read as part of the Edgar Award Reading Challenge, but the Gideon Oliver series is an exception. I’m looking forward to going back to the beginning with this one and reading through it. If you aren’t familiar with this series, I encourage you to give it a try.

http://iubookgirl.blogspot.com/2011/10/review-old-bones.html ( )

I love this novel. It has wonderful ingredients for a unique and memorable mystery.

Set on Mont Ste Michel, the book opens with the sudden death of the family patriarch as he tarries too long on the sands and the treacherous tides catch him off guard. His death leads to a reunion of what remains of his unpleasant and ever-quibbling family and to the unearthing of family secrets buried since the Nazi occupation in WW II.

Gideon Oliver is a delightful character in all of Elkin's Bones series, but the evocative ambiance and mix of mysteries old and new make this my favorite.

I read this book years ago and many of its images stayed with me. I've wanted to visit Mont Ste Michel ever since! It survived a recent re-reading and was every bit as good as I'd remembered. ( )