Two Nights has writer
Kathy Reichs venturing into new territory. This novel’s
plot line and characters do not delve into forensic anthropology
as with the Temperance Brennan series, the basis for the hit
TV show Bones. What both have in common are main characters
that bring justice to the families and the victims, whether
dead or alive.
Reichs noted the main character Sunnie Night “grew out
of a story from an earlier book, Death du Jour. It is based
on a true cult where seventy-five people were killed. Three
of the victims were in Quebec, parents and a baby, who were
assassinated. This actually happened and I was present when
they came to our lab for autopsy. After thinking about the
mentality of cults and why they kill themselves and others
I did a lot of research on the psychology. This gave me rise
to think, ‘what if someone grew up in the context of
a cult where everyone they knew was either killed or killed
themselves?’”
She decided to write a non-Temperance book after “my
publisher suggested it. At first I was not overly enthusiastic,
but the more I thought about it the more I realized it could
be quite fun. After nineteen Temperance Brennan books I am
locked in with the facts, and I have to remember to keep everything
straight. With a new character like Sunday I was able to once
again make things up, starting from nothing. I found the process
stimulating and fascinating. BTW: I like Tempe and am not
done with her yet, but I was energized in writing this new
character.”
The featured character, Sunday Night, is the direct opposite
of Temperance Brennan in many ways. She is not a scientist,
but ex-military and an ex-cop who never wants to follow the
rules. Physically and emotionally scarred from her troubled
childhood she has developed a toughness and stubbornness,
while withdrawing from the world, now living on Goat Island,
off the South Carolina coast. What she has in common with
Temperance is a dry sarcastic wit, resourcefulness, diligence,
a never-ending persistence, and intelligence, although hers
is more a street smarts.
The book begins with Sunday (Sunnie) as a reclusive hermit
being asked to investigate a missing girls’ case by
her foster father, retired detective Beau Beaumonde. He feels
that if she handles the investigation of a teenage girl possibly
kidnapped by a cult he can draw her out of seclusion and have
her face her own demons.
Stella Bright vanished a year after a bombing at a Jewish
day school where her mother and brother were killed. Her grandmother
hires Sunnie to find out if Stella is alive or dead. Needing
assistance she enlists the help of her twin brother August
(Gus) Night. The backstory of these twins influences the plot
in a riveting way. Both are impulsive, have a temper, with
an attitude to shoot first and ask questions later in their
attempts to find out the truth behind Stella’s disappearance.
Although billed as a stand-alone it has all the features to
be a series with intriguing characters and an action filled
plot. The twists and turns keep the readers guessing as to
what will happen next.
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