With cutting-edge forensic technology, a stunning setting, and a deepening relationship between Alexa and D.I. Bruce Horn, The Bone Riddle will delight science geeks, armchair travelers, and procedural buffs who like a little romance with their body count. Cape Kidnappers, New Zealand: On a cliff overlooking the ocean and one of the largest gannet bird colonies in the world, American CEO Harlan Quinn has built his "Plan B"—a lavish estate, complete with an underground doomsday bunker. Cleaning staff finds a body in the house. It appears the victim died of natural causes but advanced facial decomposition leaves him unidentifiable. Forensic odontologist Alexa Glock is called in to identify the body via dental records. Teeth never lie. But something odd in the deceased's mouth sets Alexa and the team on a new track—to find the murderer. As they work to narrow the suspect field, a second homicide—and a stolen cache of weapons from a locked room in the bunker—means they're deathly close to the truth. "Johnson expertly balances her lead's personal and professional lives and maintains nerve-shredding suspense throughout." — Publishers Weekly

"At first, Alexa Glock's first case as a traveling forensic investigator seems straightforward-her expertise in teeth helps her identify the skeletal remains of a hunter found on the remote Stewart Island in New Zealand. But when she realizes the bullet lodged in his skull was not self-inflicted and a second, shark-ravaged body washes up on Ringaringa Beach, it's clear that something is off. The disturbing sight confirms what locals have hashed out in the pub: shark cage-diving, lucrative for owners and popular with tourists, has changed the great white sharks' behavior, turning them into man eaters. Tensions between cagers and locals mount as Alexa dives into the harrowing case. And while measuring bite patterns, she makes a shocking discovery that just might lead her to the man responsible for both murders"--

A nature trek turns dangerous when the wilderness gives up its bones... New Zealand's remote Milford Track seems the perfect place for forensic investigator Alexa Glock to reconnect with her brother Charlie, with whom she hasn't spent much time since they were kids. Their backpacking trip seems ill-fated from the start, though, when she must stop on the way to examine nine skeletons—most likely Māori tribespeople—whose graves have been unearthed by highway construction. Before she opens the first casket, a Māori elder gives her a dire warning: "The viewing of bones can unleash misfortune to the living. Or worse." Though Alexa dismisses his words as superstitious, they soon come back to haunt her as the idyllic hike takes a sinister turn. First, Charlie is aloof and resentful of the time Alexa has spent at work. Then a rock avalanche nearly carries her away as it reveals the skeletal remains of someone who has clearly been stabbed to death. When a fellow hiker goes missing and is later found dead, Alexa has all she can do to focus on the science as she investigates two murders, while trying not to become the third victim.

"An epic fantasy in the Tolkien tradition, with a strong girl hero. . . . I couldn’t put it down!" – Tamora Pierce Maerad is a slave in a desperate and unforgiving settlement, taken there as a child when her family is destroyed in war. She doesn’t yet know she has inherited a powerful gift, one that marks her as a member of the noble School of Pellinor and enables her to see the world as no other can. It is only when she is discovered by Cadvan, one of the great Bards of Lirigon, that her true identity and extraordinary destiny unfold. Now, she and her mysterious teacher must embark on a treacherous, uncertain journey through a time and place where the forces of darkness wield an otherworldly terror. The first book in a projected quartet, Alison Croggon’s epic about Maerad and her remarkable yet dangerous gift is a beautiful, unforgettable tale. Presented as a new translation of an ancient text, The Naming evokes the rich and complex landscape of Annar, a legendary world just waiting to be discovered.

Presents a collection of humorous pet-themed jokes and riddles that stars Martha the talking dog.

From its discovery in the Columbia River three years ago, reporter Roger Downey has chronicled the epic adventures of the skeleton called "Kennewick Man": first as a pretext for a media feeding-frenzy, then as the centerpiece of a legal circus pitting celebrated scientists against Native Americans, the Corps of Engineers, and the Clinton White House, finally, at long last, as an object of rational scientific study. The saga of Kennewick Man offers abundant opportunity to explore today's rapidly-changing scientific theories about how the Americas first came to be settled, and by whom. But it also casts much light on the deep divisions within the fields of anthropology and archeology concerning the role of politics and race in the pursuit of scientific goals, what constitutes ethical procedure in dealing with ancient human remains and living individuals, and the very purpose and direction of the scientific enterprise itself. With an easy style that keeps you hooked from beginning to end, Downey describes the major players in this continuing debate and details the controversial scientific, religious, and political arguments surrounding Kennewick Man.