Bone Box: A Decker/Lazarus Novel

In bestseller Kellerman’s so-so 24th novel featuring Peter Decker, a retired LAPD homicide detective who now works for the Greenbury, N.Y., police, and his wife, Rina Lazarus (after 2015’s The Theory of Death), a routine morning hike for Rina becomes the catalyst for the search for a serial killer after she accidentally steps on skeletal remains, which may belong to one of several students reported missing in recent years from the so-called Five Colleges of Upstate. Peter and his sidekick, Tyler McAdams, an affluent law student who’s spending his summer with the police and has become a virtual family member, investigate; the pair eventually identify the victim, before more skeletons are unearthed in the area of the original find. Rina inserts herself into the case, despite her husband’s fears for her safety. The plot line unfolds predictably, and there’s no real emotional tension, despite a spat between Peter and Rina over watching TV. Series fans will be pleased to learn that the couple’s twin grandsons, although only seven, are basketball prodigies at their Philadelphia school. (Feb.)