Bones of Betrayal: A Body Farm Novel

A frozen corpse found in a swimming pool near the Oak Ridge nuclear research facility, where the atomic bomb was developed. Dr. Bill Brockton, founder of the Body Farm and a leading authority in forensic science, is called in to investigate. The body turns out to be that of Dr. Leonard Novak, one of the key scientists on the Manhattan Project, the code name for the WWII project that perfected the bomb. When Dr. Brockton discovers that the cause of death was not drowning, but rather radiation poisoning, he wonders if Novak's murder is related to events long past. Dr. Brockton meets Novak's bright and colorful ex-wife, Beatrice, at his funeral, and he begins his investigation of those long ago events with her. Beatrice weaves a number of show more captivating tales, but are any of them true? Can Dr. Brockton unravel the mysteries of history and navigate unsuspected twists and turns in order to solve a murder in the present?

I had great fun with this book and zipped right through it. The plot and pacing both worked well, with the science, action, and history all blending perfectly. Each fed the other beautifully. The characters were likeable and well developed, and I felt that I had a good rapport with them, even the ones introduced in earlier books. show less

This is the best book yet in an excellent series. Co-written by Bill Bass, a forensic anthropologist in charge of the Body Farm, the University of Tennessee facility that investigates body decomposition, and the main character, Bill Brockton, is the same. How much of Bill Brockton is Bill Bass I don't know, but I suspect a lot, and that adds to how real the character of Brockton feels. He is a marvelous character, a scientist who is a rational, mature man, with a great deal of empathy.

In this book, Brockton is asked to investigate the death of a man who was one of the Manhattan Project scientists in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. It turns out that the scientist was killed by a pellet of a radioactive substance, and before that is understood the show more medical examiner, Brockton, his research assistant Miranda, and a police man are exposed. The ME is the most endangered.

The threads of the story lead back to the founding of Oak Ridge. It deals with the personalities that created mankind's most terrible weapon, and all the ethical and spiritual dilemmas inherent to that enterprise, poignantly expressed by Robert Oppenheimer's quoting Hindu scripture after the atomic bomb test. He said, "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." Bill becomes fascinated with an elderly woman who was briefly married to the scientist. He also is strongly drawn to a younger woman librarian who helps him uncover the past.

The biggest thing I like about this series is the lack of machismo. I get so tired of books where the main character is a wise ass who doesn't know how to co-operate with anyone else, because that wouldn't be manly. Jefferson Bass's books have none of that. The characters are reasonable people, though they are humans with all the dilemmas and complexities that real people have.

Excellent book, excellent series. show less

In book 4 of the Body Farm series, forensic anthropologist Dr. Bill Braxton is asked to help retrieve a body that has been found frozen in ice at an abandoned hotel’s swimming pool. He and his assistant / grad student Miranda take the frozen block of ice, with body intact, to the morgue and set it on a gurney in the autopsy suite to thaw. When they return for the autopsy they get more than they bargained for. The dead man was a long-retired scientist with the Manhattan Project, working at Oak Ridge TN. Before they can even complete the autopsy the FBI gets involved.

This is typical Body Farm work – fast-paced, informative, showing good character development and a little love interest to humanize Dr Braxton. I liked how Bass show more incorporated so much history into this novel – taking the story line back to World War II and the work being done to develop the atom bomb. While the central characters in the plot are all decidedly fictitious, the back story includes many historical figures and their contributions to the Manhattan Project.

I did think the plot got a little too complicated and perhaps there was one body too many, but I was still entertained and engaged from beginning to end. A solid mystery thriller. show less

Still some great story elements, and still some irritating commentary from men. I found the infodump conversations on nuclear history rather condescending.

Hard to put down, so I read it in one reading. One of the joys of being retired. Lots of history, forensic techniques and dangers for Dr Bill and his colleagues. Some of the usual suspects and some surprising additions. Enough guilt for a convention of Jewish mothers and really fast paced. Enjoy!

This is the 4th novel by Jon Jefferson and Bill Bass who write under the name of Jefferson Bass. Bass is the forensic anthropologist who founded UT"s Body Farm and all of the novels revolve around a director of the body farm This on is set in Oak Ridge and involves murder of a scientist and soldir connectied with the Manhattan project. I found the history of Oak Ridge fascinating and the murderer came as a surprise. You can read and enjoy this novel without having read the first 3 in the series, although reading them in order is better. This is a average mystery; the setting and the characters make it interesting..

I thought this was the worst book in the series so far. I just don't find the WW2/Manhattan Project subject very interesting and the book seemed less well-crafted than the others, like they hurriedly tied some things together and rushed the book out. The flashback stories were boring, the 'twist' was not all that surprising and for the first time, I saw characters repeating phrases other characters had used in the first two books; these were people who had not interacted, so it seemed odd that they would use the exact same phrases. Hope the next one is better.