Old Bones

Gideon Oliver is lecturing on forensic anthropology at a law enforcement convention in France when he is called in by one of the participants to look at some bones recently found in the cellar of the Du Rocher home. Gideon has been there before since he's acquainted with one of the Du Rocher relatives who is also a college professor in California.

Gideon finds himself in the middle of a mystery and a family squabble for the inheritance of the recently deceased Du Rocher who found himself caught by the tides at Mont St. Michel. Events and divisions hark back to the Occupation and questions about loyalty.

History suggests that the bones belong to a German officer murdered by members of the Resistance including some Du Rochers. But Gideon show more isn't convinced. He has quite a different theory. More questions arise when another member of the family - a much hated one - is murdered by drinking wine laced with cyanide.

This story was written in 1987 but felt even older to me. I think it was that the plot centered on events that happened during World War II and that many of the current family were involved in those events. Also the family rivalry and sniping at one another felt old-fashioned to me. This is the fourth in the series of eighteen books and the first that I have read which means that this was my introduction to Gideon. I found him to be an interesting character and would like to read more books in the series to learn more about him.

I chose the audiobook version since it was an Audible Daily Deal and sounded interesting. I enjoyed Joel Richard's narration. The pacing was excellent and the characters were vocally distinct. show less

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. show more 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. show less

I received a Reader's Digest version of this work. I liked it a lot. There is the bumbling, brilliant anthropologist with the reputation, his friend, and the usual assortment of extras. The initial murder is superb and was almost repeated later but that led to the unraveling of the whole mystery. Elkins also has added some delightful humor. I think I will seek out more of his work.

Physical anthropologist Gideon Oliver's fame as the “skeleton detective” has earned him an invitation to speak at a conference in France on Science and Detection. When skeletal remains are discovered in the jurisdiction of one of the conference attendees, Dr. Oliver is asked to provide an expert opinion on the case. He's surprised to learn that the discovery occurred at a home he had visited with a former colleague a few years earlier, and that his colleague was there for a family reunion of sorts. The reunion has turned tragic after the drowning death of the home's owner just days earlier. The skeletal remains and the family history both seem to point to something that happened during the German occupation of World War II. At least show more one member of the household doesn't want Gideon to figure out what happened all those years ago.

This book has many of my favorite mystery elements – family history, academics, and an exotic location. There's even a little bit of romance. There were plenty of twists and turns to the mystery, and although I correctly guessed the answer to some of the puzzles, I was just ahead of Oliver and the police. I missed Oliver's wife, Julie, who didn't travel with him this time, but I enjoyed his camaraderie with his friend, John, an FBI agent who was attending the conference. With books set in travel destinations like England, France, and Mexico, this series has a lot of appeal for armchair travelers like me. It's great vacation reading. show less

Members of the du Rocher family have been "summoned" to a meeting at which it's oldest member Guillame intends to make an important announcement. But before they can all get together he is dead, accidentally drowned on the flats of Mont St. Michel, caught by the galloping tide. Guillame's nephew claims to have been in his confidence, and to know what the meeting was about, but he is an unlovely character, and at least one other has a different idea about why they have been brought together.

Then the discovery of a skeleton in the cellar of the chateau, one that has apparently been there for over 40 years, calls for the involvement of the police and a bones expert, an American who is lecturing at a forensic science conference.

This is the show more first in this series that I have read, and it certainly won't be the last - there are plenty to choose from.

This is a many stranded plot, lots of red herrings, with engaging and interesting characters. show less

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.

This book is fun. Crazy twists in established histories...And the clues are neat - the rickety rosary and the sternal foramen...look them up or better yet, read the book! Rereading - I remembered some of it - who the bones were, and the clue of the rickety rosary - but not who did it, or the sequence of events in either time. Lovely and complicated.