Keeping the Dead
by Tess Gerritsen

Release Date: 12th Feb 2009
Publisher: Bantam Press
ISBN: 978 0 5930 5779 7
RRP: £14.99

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Creepy tale of a stalker's obsession gone haywire...

Some bestselling authors have a dip every now and then, it is an inevitable consequence on increased demand and pressure to produce. It would then, be entirely understandable for Gerritsen's latest offering to be slightly under par, drab or even - dare I say it - unpalatably bad. The writing Gods, however, must be smiling down on Tess as Keeping the Dead is as quirky, substantial and absorbing as ever.

Featuring Maura Isles, forensic pathologist and minor local celebrity; and homicide detective, Jane Rizzoli, Keeping the Dead is a story of obsession, lust and an inescapable evil that hunts women; turning them into gruesome keepsakes.

When Josephine was just fourteen years of age, a man entered her bedroom at night and ended up dead. Since she can remember her mother has had them on the run from some dark force, fearful of an unseen evil from her mother's past. As Josephine matures and turns her attentions to college and her inherited love for Archaeology, she begins to feel more secure and is delighted when she obtains a placement at the Crispin Museum in Boston. When the mysterious Madame X is discovered within the museum's basement, she is thrilled at the prospect of being a part of the team that will uncover the mysterious mummy remains. Madame X, however, is not all she seems - certainly, she is not your typical mummified body - the bullet puts pay to that.

When more grotesque female remnants are found in the museum basement that are not all they purport to be; it becomes clear that there is something deeply suspicious about the goings on at the museum - but it is not until a corpse is found in Josephine's car that people realise that the killer is still out there - still killing and using different methods of preserving his victims. It is no coincidence that Josephine is targeted and it doesn't take long for her to realise that her past may just have caught up with her again.

With fascinating titbits on the various cultures and their methods of preserving human bodies, the more disturbing elements of the plot are made intriguing and educational rather than terrifying - much to my delight. With the delicacy of an archaeological dig, Gerritsen carefully clears away the truth that is hidden beneath a lifetime of deceit, bringing to light the real 'victim' and fixation of the deranged 'Archaeology Killer'. A magnificent novel that highlights Gerritsen's claim as our modern Queen of Crime.

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