Disturbing the Bones

by Jeff Biggers, Andrew Davis

"Thrillingly cinematic...Intense, vivid action and the intricate interweaving of the two main plot threads elevate this above standard-issue disaster thrillers. By the time the breathless denouement rolls around, readers may find they’ve been up all night."--Starred Review, Publishers Weekly

“From a Mississippi riverside archaeological dig revealing an unexpected atrocity to the back streets of Chicago, a knife-edged investigation that morphs into a political thriller about a world on the brink. An ingenious page turner.” —Michael Mann, film director and New York Times bestselling author of Heat 2

“Fans will find everything in this story they expect from the creator of The Fugitive –a high-voltage thriller, an amazing range of characters, and an astonishing conclusion.” —Sara Paretsky, New York Times bestselling author of the V. I. Warshawski novels

“Suspenseful and action-packed, Disturbing the Bones combines all the elements that has made the movies of Andrew Davis so compelling, with the thoughtful perspective and insights that can only be found in a novel.” —Louis Sachar, New York Times bestselling author of Holes

“An exceptionally edge-of-your-seat murder mystery connected to modern day Cold War global politics. With echoes of current domestic political intrigue, the tale hooks the reader from the beginning and never lets up until the very end.” —Ron Stallworth, New York Times Bestselling Author of Black Klansman

“Disturbing the Bones is a great thriller, but also a beautiful evocation of why one human–a complicated set of bones–is worth as much as all humans, in the world of loyalty and honor.”—Susan Straight, bestselling author of Mecca and In the Country of Women

”An ingenious thriller that doesn’t miss a beat.” —Robert Baer, New York Times bestselling author

“Andrew Davis is a cinematic master, and Jeff Biggers is a brilliant scribe of wild places. Together, they have created a thriller that will keep you up all night.” —Luis Urrea, New York Times bestselling author of Good Night, Irene

A propulsive debut political thriller set in the aftermath of a global nuclear weapons crisis -- from the acclaimed filmmaker of The Fugitive and an award-winning journalist

A plot to disrupt a global peace summit in Chicago collides with a civil rights case breakthrough at a mysterious archaeological site

Chicago detective Randall Jenkins has not been back home to the historic Civil Rights hotspot of Cairo, Illinois since the disappearance of his mother, a well-known journalist, several decades ago.

That all changes the day Dr. Molly Moore, an ambitious young archaeologist in the national spotlight for her groundbreaking high-tech discoveries, uncovers a set of strange bones at a huge 12,000-year-old site at a highway construction project. With retired military general and contractor William Alexander breathing down her neck to cover up the dig, Molly and Randall soon find themselves in the middle of a wild military conspiracy.

The detective and archaeologist’s entwined family mysteries suddenly thrust them into the central position as the only people who can ensure the safety of the ongoing Chicago global peace summit. They must take on the rogue general who views any disarmament agreement as a clear and present danger to the United States. The fate of global peace and the lives of Molly and Randall hang in the balance.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Political Thriller, Family

368 pages, Hardcover

Published October 22, 2024

About the author

Jeff Biggers is a cultural historian, journalist, playwright and novelist. He is the coauthor of the novel DISTURBING THE BONES with filmmaker Andrew Davis, and author of numerous nonfiction works, including IN SARDINIA: An Unexpected Journey in Italy (Melville House), TRIALS OF A SCOLD (St. Martin's), longlisted for the PEN Bograd Weld Award. Recipient of the David Brower Award for Environmental Reporting, Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Award, Biggers has worked as a freelance journalist, radio correspondent, playwright, historian and educator across the US, Europe, Mexico and India. His stories have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, The Guardian, The Atlantic, Al Jazeera America, Salon, The Nation and on National Public Radio and Public Radio International. He blogs regularly for the Huffington Post. Contributing editor at Bloomsbury Review.

His nonfiction works include State Out of the Union, selected by Publishers Weekly as a Top Ten Social Science Book in 2012; Reckoning at Eagle Creek, recipient of the Delta Award for Literature and the David Brower Award for Environmental Reporting; In the Sierra Madre, winner of the Foreword Magazine Travel Book of the Year Award; and The United States of Appalachia, praised by the Citizen Times as a "masterpiece of popular history." He also served as co-editor of No Lonesome Road: Selected Prose and Poems of Don West, which won the American Book Award, and wrote the foreword to the re-issue of Huey Perry's classic, They'll Cut Off Your Project.

Biggers founded the Climate Narrative Project, a media arts and advocacy project.

For more info: www.jeffbiggers.com

Reviews

[PamG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Andrew Davis and Jeff Biggers have written a startling and action-packed political thriller, Disturbing the Bones. Chicago detective Randall Jenkins hasn’t been to his hometown of Cairo, Illinois since the death of his journalist mother. However, that changes when archaeologist Dr. Molly Moore uncovers a set of bones that don’t fit with the 12,000-year-old site at a highway construction site. With her sponsor, retired military general and contractor William Alexander trying to hurry the dig, Molly and Randall find themselves in the middle of controversy. On top of this, there’s a global peace summit in Chicago after a nuclear weapons incident. How do these events intertwine? Can Randall and Molly put the pieces together?

The characters are well-drawn. Randall has an unflappable presence and Molly is ambitious. Both are intelligent, but their family histories have an effect on their thoughts and perceptions. The secondary characters also have depth.

This pulse-pounding thriller is full of suspense and action. The plot is multi-layered with a cold case disappearance, a significant and important archaeology dig using innovative technology, military technology, a political election, and a peace summit. The interpersonal dynamics added another layer of intensity and realism to the story. Political divisiveness, racism, civil rights, protests, to disarm or not, global politics, patriotism, conspiracies, domestic political intrigue, and trust are threads that are expertly woven into the storyline.

Quickly hooking me, the storyline gripped me and kept me rapidly turning the pages throughout the novel. The plot is thought-provoking and the characters are compelling. The exciting narrative gave excellent insight into the challenges the police, politicians, military officers and archaeologists faced. It’s insightful, thought-provoking, and riveting throughout. Additionally, it’s full of suspenseful moments that caused me to rapidly advance through the book. It incorporates real-world issues and looks at them from multiple perspectives. It’s chilling to consider the possibility of these events unfolding. My biggest quibble is the ending. It didn’t sufficiently wrap everything up satisfactorily. Does that mean there will be a sequel?

Overall, this was an intense and engaging thriller that looks at peace and patriotism from different perspectives. Exceptional characters, suspenseful events, and multiple conflicts kept me engrossed and wondering what was going to happen next. The story exceeded my expectations. If you enjoy political and crime thrillers, then I recommend that you check out this one. I am looking forward to finding out what these authors collaborate on next.

Melville House Publishing, Andrew Davis, and Jeff Biggers provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. The publication date is currently set for October 15, 2024. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.
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My 4.21 rounded to 4 stars review is coming soon.

[Sara the Librarian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like I should begin what I promise will be a very short review by letting everyone know that this book apparently began its life as a screenplay. This makes sense given its total lack of setting, character development and story arc. Its helpful knowing this going in because it lets you tell yourself "well they probably figured people would see the actors acting and all the cool special effects of buildings blowing up" when you're trying to understand why anyone is saying or doing anything they do in this book.

A black police detective from Chicago who's name is (I wish to god I was kidding about this but I'm not) Randall Jenkins and a young archaeology wunderkind who's just made a major discovery in Cairo, Illinois join forces to try to figure out how the detective's mother's bones ended up in the archaeologist's site (hey you got your bones in my bones!) This actually sounds like it would be a super cool story but unfortunately the two authors of this book know nothing about either police work or archaeology so instead it becomes about a rogue army general who doesn't like that the new female president wants to hold nuclear peace talks and plans to disrupt the talks with all this roguish meddling.

Anyone who follows my reviews knows I'm not the biggest fan of action novels. So I don't know if you're into that maybe this will work for you? The writing is so poor I kept getting distracted and losing the thread of the story. There is absolutely no character development at all and its very evident that these two old white guys know fuck all about how to write either a believable woman academic or a black police officer. For instance we are informed at one point that detective Jenkins has always hated walking into police stations (problematic since its his literal job) and he "prefers the streets."

Clunky dialogue, every stereotype you've ever encountered being used to describe any character who isn't white and male, a hackneyed plot that's been done to death and would have worked better in an 80's Steven Segal movie (incidently that is Andrew Davies claim to fame, he directed a bunch of those) and my favorite, an ambiguous ending, and you're asking why does this have two stars? I did find myself turning the pages and at least vaguely interested in how it all ended.

[BethK · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

This started quite slow, with history of violence against civil rights workers over decades. Then, it exploded into a fast-paced detective story of conspiracies, corruption, treachery, and kidnapping, threatening the survival of billions. This stems from re-opening a cold-case murder. Afterwards, conspiracy theories get much of it backwards.

This is a chilling possibility that could happen or might even BE happening in our world. Is the moral of the story to be careful when disturbing old bones?

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story:
When human remains are found at the site of an archeological dig in Cairo, Illinois, it is immediately clear that they are not prehistoric… In fact, they belong to a journalist who has been missing since the ‘70s; a woman who had been prominent in the civil rights movement.

For Detective Randall Jenkins, this is personal. The missing woman was his mother, and he will not stop until he uncovers the truth.

And for archaeologist Dr Molly Moore, what first seems an annoyance that might derail the dig she’s been waiting years to complete soon becomes personal too, when her own family’s past intwines with Randall’s.

But with matters on a global scale intersecting with the events in Cairo, Randall and Molly find themselves battling forces far more powerful than either of them realise, with the outcome of a international peace summit hanging in the balance. Will the pair be able to overcome adversaries that seem to reach to the highest level of power?

My thoughts:
Although I don’t read a lot of political thrillers, I was excited to get the chance to read “Disturbing the Bones” by Andrew Davis and Jeff Biggers, given the pedigree of both writers and of course Davis’s role as director of the acclaimed film The Fugitive.

Davis’s experience as a film director and screenwriter really shows in the epic sweep of the story, moving from the town of Cairo in Southern Illinois to the very top of the government and its military. In doing so, the story stretches from the global to the very personal, from a global nuclear weapons emergency to one man, Detective Randall Jenkins’s, investigation into the murder of his mother.

As a fan of the genre, I enjoyed the murder mystery element to this book very much, but also the increasingly breakneck pace of the events concerning a nuclear disaster in Siberia, which leads to the calling of a global peace summit in Chicago to discuss disarmament, and machinations from a retired military general to prevent what he sees as an American surrender. How this plot comes together with Jenkin’s investigation, along with the work of archaeologist Molly Moore, whose team uncover his mother’s bones, is intricate and clever. The authors manage to keep everything together across multiple locations and character points of view, leading to a story that leaves the reader breathless as it plays out.

I could easily see this story translating to the screen, and I also think there’s plenty of room for these characters to develop in future stories. Definitely one to check out for all the thriller fans out there!

[Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a brilliant book and one that has a much bigger story in it than I first realised. Written by two authors, they have created a political thriller that started with the discovery of some bones in an archaeological dig.

Set in the US, Dr Molly Moore is the lead on a dig on a piece of land near her hometown. The origin of the dig is due to some works being conducted by ex-General Alexander, who is now a private contractor. He is the one who has asked for Molly to work the site as she is well-respected in her field. That is until some bones that are too recent to be part of the site, and so begins the mystery. These are linked to a Chicago Detective, he had lived in the area and so he returns. Randall should be in Chicago as there is a campaign being run to reduce or completely eradicate nuclear weapons.

This was a cracking story and one that started quite innocently but soon morphed into an action-packed thriller with time suddenly becoming essential in the larger picture. There are a series of characters that have some major roles to play as well as those with slightly less prominence but have more significance later on.

This story is set after a new weapon has been released, and some of the technology that Gen Alexander and some of the archeological team use are suddenly more important, while there is some high-tech it is kept within the premise of the story and not too far-fetched as such.

The story weaves its way around an old crime, a new political debate, old-school beliefs, and everyone vying for their voice to be heard. This includes civil rights, gun rights, corruption, power-grabbing and conspiracy. It is one of those books that has a certain amount of scary realism to it. Politics is all over the news so it is easy to see possibilities.

This is a debut for Andrew Davies and the first time I have read a book by Jeff Biggers. This is a fabulous collaboration and I do hope to see more from them in the future. I will be looking out for more books by Bigger.

This is a book that spans a few genres but is also a tense crime, thriller with a fast pace once it gets going and one that I adored. It is one I would definitely recommend.

[Peter Fleming · Rating 4 out of 5]

It begins with an archaeological dig. Dr Molly Moore is a young, intelligent and highly ambitious archaeologist. Her career star is on the ascent thanks to groundbreaking discoveries abroad but now she is working on a huge site in her own backyard of Cairo, Illinois. Retired General William Alexander has the contract to run a new state highway through the site, vital for defence purposes, and has employed Molly to do a timely and efficient excavation before the work commences.
It comes as no surprise that bones are recovered, but some of these bones are relatively modern. This means there now is a cold case to investigate, which could delay the work of the archaeologists and have a knock-on effect with the construction of the highway.

Randall Jenkins is a veteran detective of the Chicago PD. He has not returned to Cairo since the disappearance of his mother, a well-known journalist and civil rights campaigner, decades ago.
The US is on the cusp of an election and Democrat Senator Eleanor Adams is front runner, with promises on gun controls, arms limitations and peace negotiations. Welcomed by many in the public, but less so by defence contractors.

The paths of Randall, Molly and Eleanor converge as world peace is threatened.

My initial thoughts were this would be a cold case crime story that unearths an uncomfortable past, that period of the late 50s to early 70s where civil rights for blacks was being resisted, with Molly and Randall in different camps. It certainly forms part of the backdrop, but not lot like some of the searing novels on this subject from the past. Here the message is more a case of recognising the injustices but allowing communities to heal and change if they are given time. Molly is not like her bigoted ancestors, Randall has mellowed over time and is less strident, allowing for them to become unlikely allies, albeit after periods on initial mistrust.

Their common foe becomes the military industrial sector, its endless need for tax dollars to develop new weaponry and the shady people who control it. A genuine modern fear for many and here it is ramped up several notches, or at least I hope it is, where it is beyond the control of even the President. There is a true modern bogeyman with lovely injection of megalomania, with a villain worthy of being a Bond adversary. Here he is up against a world-weary cop, some country slacker gun aficionados and nerdy archaeologists. There is little ambiguity on whose side the reader should be on and it’s a lot of fun at times.

Archaeology and politics might not appear a promising combination, surely a little bit to dry and dare I say it boring for a thriller. Far from it, with the dig site we learn a little bit about how technology is advancing the study, but it’s really the camaraderie of the multi-national digging team that captures the imagination. The need to unearth the past is part of man’s makeup and here it sounds interesting and a lot of fun. The political machinations are more a way of demonstrating Adam’s is right minded, sane and just, a rare combination in modern politics.

This is a modern American thriller, there are serious points there, but really, it’s all about the escapism and enjoying the journey. The touch of the film maker and screenwriter are clearly here in the sparing prose. The descriptions may not be lengthy, but the settings have a visual quality, a deserted cinema, grand house, country shacks and sweeping visas. This is the work of broad vivid brushstrokes providing wonderful setting and stage for an action thriller. The chapters are relatively short, almost jump cuts at times, which pushes the narrative onwards and when the action is ramped up then they become very short, at times barely a page. This gives a great sense of urgency, vital for this type of thriller, as it moves to the set-piece finale.

[Silver Screen Videos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alfred Hitchcock, the greatest suspense director of all time, understood the importance of a great script. So, he selected the best source material and used the best screenwriters to craft the scripts for classics like “Psycho,” “North by Northwest,” and “Rear Window.” A list of the writers who contributed, one way or another, to Hitch’s works reads like a who’s who of mystery and suspense scribes of the era. They include Robert Bloch, Ernest Lehman, Cornell Woolrich, Patricia Wentworth, Anthony Shaffer, Frederick Knott, and many others. Andrew Davis understands the importance of a great script as well. The acclaimed action thrillers he’s directed include “The Fugitive,” “Under Siege,” and “A Perfect Murder” (adapted from the same Frederick Knott play that inspired Hitchcock’s “Dial M for Murder”). Davis knows the elements of a good suspense thriller. So, when he turned his talents to novel writing in “Disturbing the Bones” (co-authored by Jeff Biggers), it’s no surprise that the result was a crackerjack thriller that turned out to be much more complex and layered than readers first believe.

“Disturbing the Bones” takes place mostly in and around Cairo, IL. It’s a small town on the southern tip of Illinois, at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. Like many people, I had heard the name because of its similarity to the Egyptian capital. But I was unaware of its long and often unsavory history, which forms the backdrop for the novel. (Co-author Jeff Biggers is an acclaimed journalist and an expert on this part of the United States.) Cairo was the site of lynchings, race riots, and a Ku Klux Klan revival in the early days of the 20th century and again in the 1960s. Partly because of the racial unrest, the population has dwindled to near-ghost-town proportions of 2,000 people today.

It’s against this backdrop that “Disturbing the Bones” is set. A group of archaeologists are excavating a significant find of primitive early American artifacts and human remains near Cairo. Among the thousand-year-old skeletons, they find one considerably more recent, that of Florence Jenkins, a black journalist who disappeared while on assignment in Cairo in 1978 to cover the unrest. Her son, Randall Jenkins, remembered his mother’s disappearance and has since become a Chicago police detective. He goes to Cairo to investigate. There, he meets Dr. Molly Moore, the archaeologist in charge of the expedition. She also has a family connection to the disappearance, as does the book’s third central character, retired General William Alexander, the wealthy defense contractor who sponsored the dig. (Cairo is in Alexander County, whose namesake has no relation to the fictional Alexander’s family.)

“Disturbing the Bones” starts out as a fascinating historical mystery about an area of the United States that’s itself a mystery to most readers. The authors incorporate historical details about Cairo seamlessly into the narrative. The families of the fictional main characters blend in with real-life events from decades earlier. Randall maneuvers around the inter-agency hurdles (the FBI soon becomes involved in the case) and learns more details about the events surrounding his mother’s disappearance. I expected “Disturbing the Bones” to become a well-written “ghost of the past” historical mystery.

Then, one-quarter of the way into the book, its scope expanded significantly and abruptly. While Randall is investigating his mother’s murder, a nuclear accident takes place in Siberia, killing thousands. I had as hard a time processing this transition as readers of this review probably did reading my last sentence. The accident leads to the election of a new president a few weeks later who is committed to nuclear disarmament. Under pressure from the new president, the world leaders soon schedule a disarmament conference in Chicago (a convenient plot development). Thanks to the international focus on the summit and the possible resulting security issues, the investigation into Florence Jenkins’ murder falls entirely off the map—except for Randall.

Within a few chapters, “Disturbing the Bones” shifts from a historical murder mystery to a political action thriller. The authors don’t completely forget the events back in Cairo, and the book’s focus returns there repeatedly as the book progresses. But when the Russian ambassador to the summit conference is murdered on a Chicago street, subsequent events there become much more critical in the eyes of the world. Experienced genre readers will probably guess many of the book’s later events and how the storylines eventually intersect. Still, they will be swept along among the various shootouts and firefights that take place.

Andrew Davis knows how effective movie thrillers are constructed, and “Disturbing the Bones” has all the elements. The two leads, Randall Jenkins and Molly Moore, are fully developed and likable. The book provides enough of their backgrounds to show how they are wrestling with the demons of their families’ past. Co-author Jeff Biggers contributes the region’s history, which the authors insert seamlessly into the novel. The book never bogs down in lengthy history-lesson information dumps. The details of the period provide background so that the historical material makes sense. They also encourage readers like me to learn more about Cairo’s complex history, which would make a great story by itself.

“Disturbing the Bones” is the rare novel that succeeds in two disparate genres. The transition between historical mystery and political thriller is rough initially. Also, the story has a couple of highly convenient coincidences for the protagonists. However, overall, it’s a page-turner with suspense building until the end. Also, the story’s political background is especially appropriate for the political climate of the 2020s. I’m guessing that Andrew Davis is probably working on the details of this book’s film rights because it has the makings of the rare thriller that’s not a rehash of many other movies. As for the book, I can confidently predict that “Disturbing the Bones” will disturb the sleep patterns of those who wind up staying up late at night to finish it.

NOTE: The publisher graciously provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley. However, the decision to review the book and the contents of this review are entirely my own.

[Ricky Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast paced cinematic thriller

[Thrillers R Us · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bountiful energy done dirt cheap was all the rage in the mid 1990s, giving rise to movies like THE SAINT and CHAIN REACTION, putting young hotcake stars squarely in the sights of meddling governments, state secrets, alphabet soup agencies and the newly minted megalo-baddie, Russia. Providing the atmosphere, the Windy City was where the atomic age arguably started in a secret place under the old Stagg Field stadium, courtesy of the University of Chicago and Enrico Fermi, producing the first controlled CHAIN REACTION in Dec 1942. DISTURBING THE BONES returns to Andrew Davis', yes THE Andrew Davis of ABOVE THE LAW and THE FUGITIVE, favorite place, Chicago, to demonstrate the dangers of restarting the nuclear arms race and the modern perils of nuclear holocaust at the hands of politicians who aren't worthy of the people's trust.

Literally mimicking its own title, DISTURBING THE BONES goes full Howard Carter from the start, minus the tomb of Tutankhamun or any real or imagined curse, instead unearthing some of America's ugly history at a major archaeological find, possibly the largest permanent village in the Mississippi Valley and possibly more than 12,000 years old. In the way of a new highway, this site falls under federally mandated preservation of historic artifacts, and of course Chicago PD when the bones of a long lost civil rights photographer are discovered. Echoing the archeological site set-up of JURASSIC PARK and the OG TWISTER, DISTURBING THE BONES feels like the authors showing off how much they know or how deep their research ran. In the tradition of BEVERLY HILLS COP without the motormouth hilarity of Eddie Murphy, DISTURBING THE BONES goes the MISSISSIPPI BURNING route of a restless and determined Chicago cop sifting through the dirt to find answers, likening crime scene investigation to archaeological digsite exploitation via processes, methodology, and mentality. The story treks from Chicago to Cairo, both in Illinois, one on the tip of Lake Michigan and the other deep in the south of the Prairie State on the banks of the Ohio river, separated by 440 miles and 7.5 hours of hostility, distrust, and racism. Obviously, this time, the Chi-Town cop can't walk away, not again. Like THE BLACK DAHLIA, DISTURBING THE BONES is a story about healing, retribution, vengeance, and most of all, justice.

Accompanying the simmering history and conflict below the surface of those ruins, DISTURBING THE BONES suffers from major directional issues, having the FBI, Chicago PD, Uncle Sam, the County Sheriff and Archaeologists running all over the place with a lot of 'jurismydiction crap' going on. Politics, baby, politics. As such, Cairo, IL, is a microcosm of what is currently happening in the United States, the authors happily providing veiled commentary on the previous White House Administration, the forever wars, the military industrial complex, and sundry politicians. Interestingly enough, DISTURBING THE BONES features a political battle for the White House that is presciently predictive of what is happening IRL right now for the November 2024 election. Just when readers get comfy with arky terms like Magnetometer, soil strata, radar scans, remote sensing and dead reckoning, the narrative does a 180 with a big nod to Annie Jacobsen's NUCLEAR WAR, issuing yet another stark reminder that in the game of nuclear maneuvering, posturing, and deterrence, human error is a formidable deadly enemy. In the shadow of gross Russian malfeasance and negligence, DISTURBING THE BONES turns to international intrigue, laser drone warfare, rearming America and keeping the war machine rolling to make sure that a superior armed America prevails. This is not a video game or a 1970s space flick, this is a new era of weaponry and warfare. Totally abandoning the local racist sheriff angle and civil rights era scabs, DISTURBING THE BONES warns that the chasm between speed and human error is slight and that if ya dig too deep, you may find things that are better left unfound. Digging through lots of secrets buried in southern Illinois, DISTURBING THE BONES is an ambitious thriller about finding an abducted scientist, seeking the truth, and stopping a madman with a militia. Roll the bones and get in on the action. Alea iacta est.



Thank you to Melville House, NetGalley, Andrew Davis & Jeff Biggers for the ARC.

[Michael Doane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disturbing the Bones is a gripping, high voltage political thriller that fuses cinematic momentum with moral gravity. Jeff Biggers and Andrew Davis deliver a story that moves effortlessly from an archaeological discovery steeped in historical atrocity to the nerve center of modern global politics. What begins as a mystery rooted in buried bones quickly escalates into a race against catastrophe, where personal history, national memory, and global survival collide.

One of the novel’s greatest strengths is its dual perspective. The pairing of Chicago detective Randall Jenkins and archaeologist Dr. Molly Moore allows the story to interrogate power from both the ground up and the top down. The excavation site ancient, contested, and deliberately silenced becomes a powerful metaphor for truths that institutions would rather erase. As the plot tightens, the authors weave civil rights history, military secrecy, and contemporary political brinkmanship into a narrative that feels disturbingly plausible.

What elevates Disturbing the Bones beyond a standard thriller is its moral insistence. Beneath the relentless pacing and action lies a meditation on whose lives matter, whose histories are protected, and how easily the past is sacrificed in the name of security. It is both propulsive and purposeful a novel that entertains while asking urgent questions about loyalty, conscience, and the cost of peace. By the final pages, the stakes feel not only global, but deeply human.

Michael

[Lincoln Kupchak · Rating 4 out of 5]

An intense action-packed conspiracy thriller set in Chicago and Cairo, Illinois. A large cast of pretty well drawn out characters including a tough chicago cop, a female archiologist, a handful of military generals, an intelligence agent, etc. The allegiances and motives of many of these characters are never quite clear... even to the ambiguous ending, which sets up a sequel. I was definitely involved in the storyline... even though it takes a few large time jumps and probably is biting off a bit more than it can chew in forms of subplots... the real world parallels between the fictional president (an obvious Trump clone) and his re-election opponent (clearly a barely disguised Kamala Harris) might make this too political for some but if you consider it an alternate history version of that election, where a russian nuclear accident alters the election ... well go for it.. Would have made a good movie, which was clearly Andrew Davis original intention here.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disturbing the Bones is an intense thrill ride. It starts innocently enough with an archeological dig in rural Indiana in anticipation of a road construction project. And then it takes off. There is an unresolved mystery of a reporter who had disappeared from the area years earlier who happens to be the son of a Chicago Police Detective. Add to that a rogue retired General whose aim is to keep America well-armed and strong using his son’s company to do it. All of this collides in a tense narrative that makes you feel as if you are watching a movie. The story doesn’t seem to be stretching a “what if” scenario. Well-done.

[Emma Hardy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, if there's nothing more I love than an archaeological dig and a cold case, both of which feature here from the off and got me instantly hooked.

Action packed, twisty and turny with a few subplots to keep me on my toes too, this has a little bit of everything.

The chapters are only a page or 2 long which makes for short sharp reading and kept me interested throughout. This meant it maintained a good pace and kept me wanting to read on with a 'just one more chapter' mentality.

Tense and surprising.

[Randolph · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a huge Andrew Davis movie fan, and this book did not disappoint. From the opening pages at an archaeological site and a mysterious set of bones, to the showdown at the very end, the novel had the pacing of The Fugitive, with the deep stories and characters of Holes, with the tension of Perfect Murder. The intertwining plots are brilliant. The main characters, Randall and Molly, are a strong duo against the forces of evil. Great summer read. Thanks for the ARC.

[Trish Trong · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the ARC. The novel was a delightful surprise, or suspense, actually. It starts with an intriguing premise and then keeps pulling back the layers of a mystery, until you can't put it down. I don't think there could be a more timely novel either, with its themes and twists around an election, global politics, and unsolved crimes. Molly, the archaeologist, is a great character that I'd like to see in the next book.

[Vicki · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointing, disjointed, and inadequately edited, so I am abandoning it after 98 pages.
I originally put it on hold after reading a positive review in BookPages and learning that it was set in Illinois, partly at an archaeological dig. I have enjoyed old-bones mysteries before, and this one seemed like a good choice to fulfill ATY 2025 Prompt #41: A book that involves digging up the past. It still seems it would be perfect for the purpose--if only I found it readable.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much for one novel - the cold case / archaeology plot alone would have made a nice slow-paced detective story, and the rogue paramilitary / high tech weapons plot could have made a riveting thriller. Combining them in one story diluted the effectiveness of both. I hoped they would converge more seamlessly by the end, but the “ending” was a huge disappointment.

[Fra · Rating 5 out of 5]

The excerpt is available online. What a gripping story. Mysterious bones are found at an archaeological site and set off an investigation. I can't wait to finish the rest of the book! The Fugitive and Holes, also Perfect Murders, are some of my favorite films.

[Barbara Schweitzer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the archeological dig and the murder mystery but the lasers and military involvement was too political for me-would make a good movie perhaps. Characters were interesting and the story kept my attention.

[Kevin Hall · Rating 2 out of 5]

They threw nine plots at a wall and then decided to run with all of them, instead of focusing on...two or three. An absolute weird mess with "HEY ORANGE MAN BAD!" sentiments interspersed throughout. Clunky writing and awful dialogue.

[Ryan Hillis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great thriller. Read the arc. Finished in one whole weekend.

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review to come. What a surprise. Amazing page-turner.

[TC · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recommended with reservations.

Review posted at Tzer Island book blog:

https://www.tzerisland.com/bookblog/2...

[Shannon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Took a weird turn and i didn’t like it. Should have just stayed with the archeologist and detective, the whole military thing was odd.

[PT · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down. In the Heat of the Night meets Dr. Strangelove. Super original and thought-provoking.

[Andy Plonka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Way too much technical information for my taste.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love Andrew Davis, not sure I love this one

[Nan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breathtaking page-turner!

[Eydie sanders]

This is a book that would make a good movie, but the ending SUCKED.

[P.E. Shipley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gripping and so so timely. Read it.