Book Review - Deja Dead

Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs

Downloaded from Audible

Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat

Why? this past year I've been disappointed in a couple of series I've loyally read for several years...(James Patterson's Women's Murder Club and Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum)...and one of my favorites is coming to an end Summer 2012 (Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse).  

I decided to spend some times "researching" three other series I thought I might like to get into next.   Besides Kathy Reichs' Temperence Brennan series, I also looked into Tess Gerritsen's Rizzoli and Isles as well as Patricia Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta novels.  I read a few reviews for each series, and I even watched the pilot episodes of both the Reichs and Gerritsen books.  I was immediately drawn to Bones but not so much to Rizzoli and Isles, so I decided to push Gerritsen to the back burner (for now) and chose Tempe Brennan as my next smart girl heroine :)  

Stephanie Plum better get with it...

or else :p

What Now? This series makes me think...and it makes me ever so thankful that professionals like Temperence Brennan really exist and have the thinking skills as well as the book knowledge to solve these crimes, sometimes using only leftovers (ahem, human leftovers) as evidence.  

On to book 2 :)

Why Audiobook format?  I started off reading Deja Dead on my Nook...but I had to keep forcing myself to read.  How could I like a tv series so much and have such a difficult time getting into the books the show was based on??

You see why I have the rule about reading first??

The first book takes place in Montreal and Quebec, and much of the language is tinged with French phrases, names, etc. I have absolutely nill background about this area of the world.  The science is also about as steep as it can get.  All that together made me almost feel dumb.  I think it overwhelmed me. 

I blamed myself rather than the book and decided I would give it one last shot...but instead of going back to my Nook, I took the plunge and downloaded it to Audible.  

Audiobooks are expensive.  Period.  

I'm one of those folks who loves to buy books...and even after I've listened to an audiobook or read a book via one of my electronic devices (Nook, Kindle, Iphone, etc.), I sometimes still want to buy the paper copy...especially if the book ranks up there with the other keepers I have on the shelves of my antique secretary.  The audiobooks I've listened to in my car end up being on clearance at BAM or Barnes and Noble or checked out from the library.  I mean, really, have you seen the prices on brand new audiobook selections??  I don't mind paying hardback prices for books...but not for CD's of the book when there's a possibility I'm gonna turn around and buy the book anyway.

:/

With Audible, I pay a certain fee per month and can download audiobooks at discounted prices.  With each purchase, I also earn points that can be used toward my next purchase.  

Much, much more affordable.

Summary

Temperence Brennan is a forensic anthropologist at the Laboratoire de Medecine Legale.  On top of the highly specialized job of identifying human remains, Tempe is incredibly smart, incredibly successful, has a college aged daughter, an ex-husband (divorced barely a year) and is a recovering alcoholic.  

In Deja Dead, through her own work, plus assisting her longstanding friend Gabby with an anthropological project among prostitutes, Tempe stumbles into a serial murder investigation.

Tempe puts clues together but is forced to run those clues through a group of male detectives who are anything but happy that she's stepped up to the plate, especially one older detective named Charboneau who seems to think women are better in the kitchen and at home than working on a murder investigation.  

As Temperence begins to unravel the clues, the killer begins to lose concentration on his victims and turns his sights on Tempe herself.  

What I Liked 

Tempe - how can you not like this woman.  Her life is not perfect, and she doesn't pretend nor strive for it to be.  She is a mom, a professional, a woman, a friend, a person.  Tempe is tough but also vulnerable...She wants a drink, but remembers why she can't even dance one dance with that particular devil.

Even though a drink would help for the moment, the morning after always comes...and it's not worth it.

She loves her daughter Katy fiercely but knows Katy has some decisions to make and that Katy will most likely make those decisions on her own. Tempe lives with and loves her cat Birdie :)  She loves and appreciates Birdie for his independence and catness...as only a genuine cat lover can.

Tempe cares for her ex-husband Pete (more for the happier times from  their life together than the present, but she still cares). Tempe knows that she and Pete don't really belong together; their lives are different now, and their relationship changed before the marriage was over.

Plus, when he's not getting on her nerves, Detective Ryan really looks nice in those 501's he wears :)


Tempe loves Gabby...and accepts her for who she is...even when Gabby gets on Tempe's nerves.  Tempe even loves Gabby enough to know that she can't keep rescuing her every time she gets herself in trouble...and most importantly, like Katy, Gabby is a grown woman and will choose her own path in life and will take her own risks, no matter what Tempe suggests.

Last but not least, Tempe cares for the people whose bones she identifies...she wants their families to have some closure...some kind of peace.  While it's her job to put up walls and sometimes anesthetize herself from what she sees, she can't help but feeling emotional for those who've been left behind.

And, most importantly (to me anyway), Tempe is not whiny about ANY of these things.  

Life is what it is.  And, Tempe Brennan lives it.  

The science - whoa Nelly...I think one of the reasons I like the science is bc I really have to pay attention...if I'm trying to get my mind off something (driving back and forth somewhere day after day, the crappy day at work I just had, a monotonous day's routine, etc.), I plug the earphones in and I'm gone.  My brain is racing to keep up. 

The suspense - I never knew who the killer was until the killer was unmasked...as a matter of fact, I didn't have a clue.  My heart raced at times, anticipating the killer's next move...and then it wouldn't happen.  Instead of being disappointed, I was relieved.  My fear level rose immensely when the killer finally made his final move, and I could barely breathe until the scene was over.
Now, THAT is a a series that's worthy of my time :)

What I Didn't Like

The science - for example, there was one place in the audio where Tempe discussed the different kinds of cuts made by saws...she calls a saw expert and for page after page they talked about various saws, their individual teeth, what kinds of pressure it takes to move the saws, the motions, the grooves, the way the cut, groove and pressure affect the bone....zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Oh, sorry :p

I'm not exaggerating, folks...Kathy Reichs is all about some scientific detail.  It's incredibly exciting and challenging most of the time, but it can also leave you behind if you're, let's say, not a saw afficianado ;)

Narrator

I listened to the first chapters in the regular paced audio speed, but once I got used to the words, the surroundings and the accent, I sped her up :)  The voice was not distorted at all, just a little less time between the pauses.  Perfect.  

I knew from the first few minutes of the audio that I would be ok with this narrator; her accent is flawless and sounds original...her French impeccable where French phrases were used for effect...I even found myself near the end picking up on nuances and noticing words in French that were similar to English words.  

She switched voices between gruff male detectives, Tempe herself, her friend Gabby, the prostitutes Gabby was working with, Tempe's daughter Katy, the villain in the heat of a kill, etc. with ease.  The dialogue was very easy to follow and kept me on the edge of my seat.  

Overall Recommendation

1.  Do NOT read the Kathy Reichs series expecting Temperence Brennan on television to be Temperence Brennan in the books.  The name is just about the only similarity between the two characters, that and the fact that they are both forensic anthropologists.

2.  If you are tired of the same old formulaic, no brainer detective/mystery stuff, and want something to challenge your sleuthing abilities as well as question whether or not you took enough science classes in high school, this is your series.