Breaking Point

Past, present, and future collide to throw respected forensic anthropologist Bill Brocktons successful, secure life into devastating turmoil in this, the most poignant novel yet in the New York Times bestselling Body Farm mystery seriesBad guys lie. Bugs always tell you the truth.Dr. Bill Brocktonfounder of the University of Tennessees macabre Body Farmis riding high, enjoying professional acclaim and personal contentment. While celebrating his thirtieth wedding anniversary with his loving wife, Kathleen, Brockton recalls how close he once came to losing Kathleen and their son at the hands of a sadistic serial killer named Satterfield. But that was long ago, and in the years since Satterfields conviction, Brocktons family has grown to include a lovely daughter-in-law and two lively grandsons. His career has flourished, too, as the Body Farms pioneering researchalong with Brocktons forensic expertisehave brought him respect, renown, and high-profile cases.Now the FBI needs Brocktons help with his highest-profile case ever: identifying the remains of a pilot killed in a fiery plane crash outside San Diego. Are the charred bones indeed those of Richard Janus, a maverick humanitarian whose daring airlifts to international disaster sites made him a celebrity? And was the nighttime crash on a mountainside an accident, or was it suicideor murder?But a storm is about to hit Brockton with cataclysmic force. First, he discovers hes landed in the middle of a nasty political battle involving warring feds, secret agendas, a ruthless drug kingpin, and a celebrity whose life was a labyrinth of secrets. Then Brocktons identification of the crash victim is called into question, as is the future of his research facility. Reeling from these shocking blows, he receives a gruesome threat from the killer who nearly murdered the Brocktons more than a decade before. But worse is to come: from his beloved Kathleenhis lodestone and his source of securityBrockton gets the most shocking news of all.Will the legendary Dr. Bill Brockton be able to weather the onslaught . . . or will it push him beyond his breaking point?