Note – I received a copy of this book from the publisher through TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
About The Bone Tree
• Paperback: 832 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Reprint edition (September 13, 2016)
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Greg Iles comes the second novel in his Natchez Burning trilogy—which also includes Natchez Burning and the upcoming Mississippi Blood—an epic trilogy of blood and race, family and justice, featuring Southern lawyer Penn Cage.
Former prosecutor Penn Cage and his fiancée, reporter and publisher Caitlin Masters, have barely escaped with their lives after being attacked by wealthy businessman Brody Royal and his Double Eagles, a KKK sect with ties to some of Mississippi’s most powerful men. But the real danger has only begun as FBI Special Agent John Kaiser warns Penn that Brody wasn’t the true leader of the Double Eagles. The puppeteer who actually controls the terrorist group is a man far more fearsome: the chief of the state police’s Criminal Investigations Bureau, Forrest Knox.
The only way Penn can save his father, Dr. Tom Cage—who is fleeing a murder charge as well as corrupt cops bent on killing him—is either to make a devil’s bargain with Knox or destroy him. While Penn desperately pursues both options, Caitlin uncovers the real story behind a series of unsolved civil rights murders that may hold the key to the Double Eagles’ downfall. The trail leads her deep into the past, into the black backwaters of the Mississippi River, to a secret killing ground used by slave owners and the Klan for over two hundred years . . . a place of terrifying evil known only as “the bone tree.”
The Bone Tree is an explosive, action-packed thriller full of twisting intrigue and deadly secrets, a tale that explores the conflicts and casualties that result when the darkest truths of American history come to light. It puts us inside the skin of a noble man who has always fought for justice—now finally pushed beyond his limits.
Just how far will Penn Cage, the hero we thought we knew, go to protect those he loves?
Purchase Links
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My Thoughts
As with the first, this book contains a lot of detail. There were times I wondered if we really needed it all–particularly due to the length of the book–but I think the detailed writing is true to the genre and didn’t detract from the story at all. Also, there was a period of time where the book slowed down a bit in the middle, but not for long and I didn’t want to put down the book during that time.
That is where my critiques end because I absolutely loved this book. At the end of the first book I wasn’t really sure where this one was going to go, but it didn’t take long to begin to see how all of the different parts of the story to fit together. I felt like I developed a deeper connection with some of the characters this time and it definitely broke my heart a few times.
It also piqued my interest for an event in US History that never really captured my attention before. I ended up talking to my parents about it and looking it up online. As a whole, the series has made me look at an entire period differently; it’s made me “experience” it, in a way.
About Greg Iles
About Greg IlesGreg Iles spent most of his youth in Natchez, Mississippi. His first novel, Spandau Phoenix, was the first of thirteen New York Times bestsellers, and his new trilogy continues the story of Penn Cage, protagonist of The Quiet Game, Turning Angel, and #1 New York Times bestseller The Devil’s Punchbowl. Iles’s novels have been made into films and published in more than thirty-five countries. He lives in Natchez with his wife and has two children.
Find out more about Greg at his website, follow him on Twitter, and connect with him on Facebook.
