THE BONE HUNGER

An orthopedic surgery resident becomes embroiled in a murder investigation when patients’ severed limbs begin turning up in this sequel.

Second-year resident Benjamin Oris is the newest addition to Dr. Kent Lock’s surgical team at Philadelphia’s Montgomery Hospital. Ben is the only member who was not a part of a humanitarian mission a month earlier; the others survived a plane crash followed by five days in the Alaskan snow. Although Ben missed that grueling experience, he does find a severed leg while hiking with his son’s mother, Sophia Diaz. Ben recognizes its tattoo as belonging to a recent patient who died shortly after receiving an orthopedic implant. But a second recovered limb (with an implant) is from a missing Montgomery Hospital patient and, based on the evidence, she’s likely a murder victim. Detectives fixate on Ben, as he was involved in a voodoo-related case years ago. But Centers for Disease Control and Prevention psychiatrist Derek Epps, who occasionally assists police, has a wild theory. The killer may believe he’s a monster, literally, and bite marks on the limbs seemingly support Derek’s conjecture. As further homicide victims had undergone surgery via Lock’s team, Ben is worried about Sophia’s imminent knee replacement, which could put her in danger of facing a psychotic killer whose savage murders are only escalating. Rubin skillfully creates indelible characters, some of whom appeared in the author’s preceding novel, The Bone Curse (2018), including Ben. In this gripping sequel, Ben has a platonic relationship with ex-lover Sophia, but the two share custody of their son and unmistakably care for each other. Other players are ambiguous, which is fitting, as Derek’s theory turns the plane crash survivors into suspects (trauma can induce psychosis, and the murderer knows about the implants). The author’s prose is sleek and organic, regarding both descriptions and punchy dialogue. But the most striking passages are from the killer’s periodic narrative perspective—disturbing thoughts from a clearly tortured mind. An open-ended conclusion, with a sprinkle of the supernatural, sets the stage for a third installment.

An aptly crafted, riveting, and often unnerving mystery.