Reading order · 23 books · 1997 to 2025 · Set in Montreal
Temperance Brennan Books in Order
Dr Temperance Brennan is a forensic anthropologist who splits her time between Montreal and Charlotte, North Carolina, identifying the dead from their bones. Reichs is a forensic anthropologist herself, and the science in these crime novels is real.
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Series facts
- Books
- 23
- Published
- 1997 to 2025
- First book
- Déjà Dead
- Latest
- Fire and Bones (2025)
- Setting
- Set in Montreal
The reading order
Every Temperance Brennan book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
23 books · Set in Montreal
- 1Déjà Dead1997With Temperance BrennanIn Montreal, forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan examines the dismembered remains of a woman and becomes convinced that a serial killer is at work, although the police are not persuaded.Buy on Amazon
- 2Death du Jour1999With Temperance BrennanTempe exhumes the remains of a nun who is being considered for sainthood, while a deadly fire in Quebec leads her towards a secretive group.Buy on Amazon
- 3Deadly Décisions2000With Temperance BrennanA young girl is killed in the crossfire of a war between biker gangs in Quebec, and Tempe joins the investigation.Buy on Amazon
- 4Fatal Voyage2001With Temperance BrennanA plane crashes in the mountains of North Carolina, and among the remains Tempe finds a foot that does not belong to any of the passengers.Buy on Amazon
- 5Grave Secrets2002With Temperance BrennanTempe goes to Guatemala to help recover victims of the civil war from a mass grave, and is drawn into a search for missing young women.Buy on Amazon
- 6Bare Bones2003With Temperance BrennanTempe’s plans for a quiet summer in Charlotte fall apart when a series of cases, starting with a small set of remains, turn out to be connected to the illegal trade in wildlife.Buy on Amazon
- 7Monday Mourning2004With Temperance BrennanThree skeletons are found in the basement of a Montreal pizzeria, and Tempe must work out whether they are old bones or recent victims.Buy on Amazon
- 8Cross Bones2005With Temperance BrennanA man is shot dead in Montreal, and a photograph of an ancient skeleton found on him leads Tempe to Israel and the ruins of Masada.Buy on Amazon
- 9Break No Bones2006With Temperance BrennanTempe is running an archaeology field school on the South Carolina coast when her students uncover a body that is far too recent.Buy on Amazon
- 10Bones to Ashes2007With Temperance BrennanA skeleton found in Quebec may be that of Tempe’s childhood friend, an Acadian girl who disappeared without a trace.Buy on Amazon
- 11Devil Bones2008With Temperance BrennanIn Charlotte, a basement is found holding a cauldron and a human skull, and the city fears ritual killings.Buy on Amazon
- 12206 Bones2009With Temperance BrennanTempe wakes up bound in a dark, enclosed space, with no memory of how she got there, while someone is trying to wreck her reputation.Buy on Amazon
- 13Spider Bones2010With Temperance BrennanA man who was supposedly killed in Vietnam in 1968 is found dead in Quebec, and the mystery takes Tempe to Hawaii.Buy on Amazon
- 14Flash and Bones2011With Temperance BrennanA body is found in a barrel of asphalt near the Charlotte Motor Speedway during NASCAR race week.Buy on Amazon
- 15Bones Are Forever2012With Temperance BrennanA case that begins in Montreal leads Tempe north to Yellowknife and the diamond mines of the Northwest Territories.Buy on Amazon
- 16Bones of the Lost2013With Temperance BrennanA teenage girl is killed in a hit-and-run in Charlotte, and the case leads Tempe to human trafficking and to a war crimes investigation in Afghanistan.Buy on Amazon
- 17Bones Never Lie2014With Temperance BrennanA killer who escaped Tempe years ago seems to be at work again.Buy on Amazon
- 18Speaking in Bones2015With Temperance BrennanAn online amateur sleuth brings Tempe a disturbing recording that she believes is linked to a set of unidentified remains in the North Carolina mountains.Buy on Amazon
- 19A Conspiracy of Bones2020With Temperance BrennanRecovering from surgery and facing a hostile new boss, Tempe investigates a body whose face and hands have been removed.Buy on Amazon
- 20The Bone Code2021With Temperance BrennanAfter a hurricane, a medical waste container washes up on a South Carolina island with two bodies inside, and the case echoes one Tempe worked in Quebec years before.Buy on Amazon
- 21Cold, Cold Bones2022With Temperance BrennanA gruesome parcel left on Tempe’s doorstep begins a series of killings that seem to echo her own past cases.Buy on Amazon
- 22The Bone Hacker2023With Temperance BrennanTempe Brennan investigates years of disappearances among young male tourists in Turks and Caicos, and finds a threat with global reach.Buy on Amazon
- 23Fire and Bones2025With Temperance BrennanTempe is drawn into a deadly arson investigation in Washington, where the building’s past links to a bootlegging gang, and someone seems to anticipate her every move.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Read in order, starting with Déjà Dead. Each case stands alone, but Tempe’s life and her relationship with Andrew Ryan develop across the series.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Temperance Brennan | Andrew Ryan | Katy Brennan | Pete Petersons | Pierre LaManche | Skinny Slidell | Harry Brennan | Anique Pomerleau |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Déjà Dead | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 2 Death du Jour | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 3 Deadly Décisions | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 4 Fatal Voyage | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 5 Grave Secrets | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 6 Bare Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 7 Monday Mourning | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor |
| 8 Cross Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 9 Break No Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 10 Bones to Ashes | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 11 Devil Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 12 206 Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 13 Spider Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 14 Flash and Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 15 Bones Are Forever | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 16 Bones of the Lost | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 17 Bones Never Lie | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | MMajor | |
| 18 Speaking in Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 19 A Conspiracy of Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | |||
| 20 The Bone Code | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | |||
| 21 Cold, Cold Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | |||
| 22 The Bone Hacker | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | |||
| 23 Fire and Bones | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor |
Characters in the Temperance Brennan books
8 characters from Kathy Reichs’s chart, with the number of Temperance Brennan books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Temperance BrennanForensic anthropologist working in Montreal and Charlotte | 23 | Déjà Dead 1997 |
| Andrew RyanMontreal homicide detective and Tempe’s on-off partner | 23 | Déjà Dead 1997 |
| Katy BrennanTempe’s daughter | 23 | Déjà Dead 1997 |
| Pete PetersonsTempe’s estranged husband | 23 | Déjà Dead 1997 |
| Pierre LaMancheChief of the Montreal medical examiner’s lab | 18 | Déjà Dead 1997 |
| Skinny SlidellCharlotte homicide detective | 18 | Bare Bones 2003 |
| Harry BrennanTempe’s sister | 3 | Death du Jour 1999 |
| Anique PomerleauSerial killer who escapes Tempe | 2 | Monday Mourning 2004 |