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madisonbell_'s review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
jajorgen's review against another edition
4.0
While I was reading Koff's debut mystery I watched a crime show on television. The difference between this well-researched forensic mystery and the shoddy science on the show was monumental. So much so that I ranted about it elsewhere. That said, FREEZING is a great start to what I hope will be a long-running series.
Jayne Hall and Steelie Lander run the 32/1 agency, a nonprofit organization that does forensic profiles of missing persons and tries to connect them with the many Jane and John Does who've been left in coroner's offices around the country. They're forensic anthropology expertise is requested by a friend at the FBI when a traffic accident on an LA freeway leads to the discovery of the remnants of a body. Remnants that are actually pieces, two arms and part of a leg to be exact. The agents are convinced that these body parts are connected to a possible serial killer who'd been operating in Georgia and they want Jayne and Steelie to help them prove the connection.
Clea Koff is a herself a forensic anthropologist who runs an agency much like the fictional one she has created for her protagonists. Her expertise is a great asset to the book. Every now and then she does do a little bit of info-dumping, but mostly she lets her characters tell the story. The mystery is one that builds slowly as Jayne and Steelie and their FBI counterparts put the pieces together (ackk, bad pun there). This was definitely a palate cleanser after I got done with the bad tv science.
This review was posted at MADreads:
http://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/madreads/forensic-science-done-right
Jayne Hall and Steelie Lander run the 32/1 agency, a nonprofit organization that does forensic profiles of missing persons and tries to connect them with the many Jane and John Does who've been left in coroner's offices around the country. They're forensic anthropology expertise is requested by a friend at the FBI when a traffic accident on an LA freeway leads to the discovery of the remnants of a body. Remnants that are actually pieces, two arms and part of a leg to be exact. The agents are convinced that these body parts are connected to a possible serial killer who'd been operating in Georgia and they want Jayne and Steelie to help them prove the connection.
Clea Koff is a herself a forensic anthropologist who runs an agency much like the fictional one she has created for her protagonists. Her expertise is a great asset to the book. Every now and then she does do a little bit of info-dumping, but mostly she lets her characters tell the story. The mystery is one that builds slowly as Jayne and Steelie and their FBI counterparts put the pieces together (ackk, bad pun there). This was definitely a palate cleanser after I got done with the bad tv science.
This review was posted at MADreads:
http://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/madreads/forensic-science-done-right
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