Its the second-to-last day of archaeologieal field school. Dr Temperance Brennan$ students are working on a site of prehistoric graves on Dewees, a barrier island north of Charleston, South Carolina, when a decomposing body is uncovered in a shallow grave off a lonely beach,

The skeleton is articulated, the bone fresh and the vertebrae still connected by soft-tissue; the remains are encased in rotted fabric and topped by wisps of pale, blond hair - a recent burial, and a case Tempe must take.

Dental remains and skeletal gender and race indicators suggest that the deceased is a middle-aged white male - but who was he? Why was he buried in a clandestine grave? And what does the unusual fracture of the sixth cervical vertebra signify?

While Tempe is trying to piece together the evidence, her personal life is thrown into turmoil. When a bullet - intended, perhaps, for her - puts her estranged husband Pete in hospital, Tempe's unexpectedly emotional

- response complicates her relationship with Detective Andrew Ryan.

But before long, another body is discovered - and Tempe finds herself drawn deeper into a shocking and chilling investigation, set to challenge her entire view of humanity...

Praise for Kathy Reichs

"It's becoming apparent that Reichs is not just "as good as" Cornwell, she has become the finer writer' Daily Express

• The forensic detail is harrowing, the pace relentless and the prose assured. Kathy Reichs just gets better and better and is now the Alpha female of the genre' Irish Independent
• A brilliant novel... Reichs's seamless blending of fascinating science and dead-on psychological portrayals, not to mention a whirlwind of a plot, make Break No Bones a must read' Jeffery Deaver