Temperance Brennan
Encyclopedia
Temperance Daesee Brennan is a fictional character created by author Kathy Reichs
, and is the hero of her crime novel series (which are usually referred to as the Temperance Brennan novels). She was introduced in Reichs' first novel, Déjà Dead, which was published in 1997. Like her creator, Brennan is a forensic anthropologist
, who divides her time between work in North Carolina
, and working in Montreal
for the Laboratoire des Sciences Judiciaires et de Médecine Légale for the province of Quebec
. In a number of novels it is indicated that Brennan's background lies in archaeology, rather than medicine, and throughout the novels she stresses the importance of correct crime scene processes.
Before the first novel, Tempe left her husband, Pete, and overcame a lifelong struggle with alcoholism
. She then accepted a job at the Laboratoire des Sciences Judiciaires et de Médecine Légale for the province of Quebec
. She splits her time between teaching at the University of North Carolina and advising on crime scenes, and spends about half of the year in each country. She has a daughter, Katy, who is in college.
's 2007 novel First Among Sequels.
television series, Bones
, whose character was not based on Reichs' books or the Brennan of her books but rather on the author herself. In the TV series, Temperance Brennan is played by Emily Deschanel. Reichs herself has stated that she sees the Tempe of the television series as a younger version of the novel Tempe. Reichs is an executive producer of the show, and oversees the forensic science aspect of the series. She also wrote the fifth season episode "The Witch in the Wardrobe," which shared some plot elements with her novel Devil Bones. On the show Temperance "Bones" Brennan writes crime novels with a fictional forensic anthropologist named Kathy Reichs as the protagonist.
Temperance Brennan also appears in the Jasper Fforde
novel First Among Sequels.
Kathy Reichs
Kathleen Joan Toelle "Kathy" Reichs is an American crime writer, forensic anthropologist and academic . She is a professor of anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, but is currently on indefinite leave...
, and is the hero of her crime novel series (which are usually referred to as the Temperance Brennan novels). She was introduced in Reichs' first novel, Déjà Dead, which was published in 1997. Like her creator, Brennan is a forensic anthropologist
Forensic anthropology
Forensic anthropology is the application of the science of physical anthropology and human osteology in a legal setting, most often in criminal cases where the victim's remains are in the advanced stages of decomposition. A forensic anthropologist can assist in the identification of deceased...
, who divides her time between work in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, and working in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
for the Laboratoire des Sciences Judiciaires et de Médecine Légale for the province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. In a number of novels it is indicated that Brennan's background lies in archaeology, rather than medicine, and throughout the novels she stresses the importance of correct crime scene processes.
Character history
Dr. Temperance "Tempe" Brennan is a forensic anthropologist, who investigates human remains at crime scenes where the flesh is too degraded for a coroner to obtain evidence (victims of arson, mutilation, advanced decomposition, etc.). Tempe is first introduced in Déjà Dead. She is a native of the Carolinas and one of only fifty board-certified forensic anthropologists in North America.Before the first novel, Tempe left her husband, Pete, and overcame a lifelong struggle with alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
. She then accepted a job at the Laboratoire des Sciences Judiciaires et de Médecine Légale for the province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. She splits her time between teaching at the University of North Carolina and advising on crime scenes, and spends about half of the year in each country. She has a daughter, Katy, who is in college.
The Temperance Brennan novels
There are currently fourteen books in the series, with the latest, Flash and Bones, released in August 2011. Temperance Brennan also makes a cameo appearance in Jasper FfordeJasper Fforde
Jasper Fforde is a British novelist. Fforde's first novel, The Eyre Affair, was published in 2001. Fforde is mainly known for his Thursday Next novels, although he has written several books in the loosely connected Nursery Crime series and begun two more independent series: The Last Dragonslayer...
's 2007 novel First Among Sequels.
- Déjà DeadDéjà DeadDéjà Dead is the first novel by Kathy Reichs starring Temperance Brennan. It won the 1998 Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Novel.-Plot:When the meticulously dismembered body of a woman is found discovered in the ground of an abandoned monastery which is too "decomposed for standard autopsy", an...
(1997) - Death du JourDeath du Jour (novel)Death du Jour is the second novel by Kathy Reichs in the Temperance Brennan series.- Plot summary :On a cold March night in Montreal, forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan is exhuming the remains of a nun from the grounds of an old church....
(1999) - Deadly DecisionsDeadly Decisions (novel)Deadly Decisions is the third novel by Kathy Reichs in the Temperance Brennan series.-Plot:Violence is escalating, and spilling on to the streets of Montreal....
(2000) - Fatal VoyageFatal VoyageFatal Voyage is the fourth book from the author Kathy Reichs in the Temperance Brennan series.-Plot:A plane crashes high in the mountains of North Carolina.But a severed foot is discovered a good distance from the main crash site......
(2001) - Grave SecretsGrave Secrets-Plot:Guatemala, in the searing heat.The bones of a child no more than two years old are uncovered when mass graves are excavated.Twenty-three women and children are said to lie where forensic anthropologist Dr...
(2002) - Bare BonesBare Bones (novel)Bare Bones is the sixth novel by Kathy Reichs starring Temperance Brennan, first published in 2003.- Plot :It's one of the hottest summers on record and forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan is looking forward to a long-overdue vacation...
(2003) - Monday MourningMonday MourningMonday Mourning is the seventh novel by Kathy Reichs featuring the fictional forensic anthropologist, Temperance Brennan.-Plot:Three skeletons are found in the basement of a pizza parlour....
(2004) - Cross BonesCross Bones (novel)Cross Bones is the eighth novel by Kathy Reichs starring Temperance Brennan, first published in 2005.-Plot:An orthodox Jew is found shot dead in Montreal, the mutilated body barely recognisable....
(2005) - Break No BonesBreak No Bones (novel)Break No Bones is a book by Kathy Reichs, published in 2006 and featuring forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan.-Plot:A decomposing body is uncovered in a shallow grave off a lonely beach......
(2006) - Bones to AshesBones to AshesBones to Ashes is the tenth novel by Kathy Reichs in the forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan series.-Plot:Under the microscope, the outer bone surface is a moonscape of craters....
(2007) - Devil BonesDevil BonesDevil Bones, published in 2008, is the eleventh novel by Kathy Reichs featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan.- Plot :Charlotte, North Carolina. One of the town's oldest neighbourhoods....
(2008) - 206 Bones206 Bones206 Bones is the twelfth novel by Kathy Reichs in the Temperance Brennan series.-Plot:Tempe is still unsure whether to continue her romantic relationship with Andrew Ryan...
(2009) - Spider BonesSpider BonesSpider bones is the 13th novel by Kathy Reichs in the Temperance Brennan series.-Plot:John Lowery was declared dead in 1968, the victim of a Huey crash in Vietnam, his body buried long ago in North Carolina. Four decades later, Temperance Brennan is called to the scene of a drowning in Hemmingford,...
(2010) (Also published as Mortal Remains) - Flash and Bones (2011)
Appearances in other media
The character shares the same name with the protagonist of the AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television series, Bones
Bones (TV series)
Bones is an American crime drama television series that premiered on the Fox Network on September 13, 2005. The show is based on forensic anthropology and forensic archaeology, with each episode focusing on an FBI case file concerning the mystery behind human remains brought by FBI Special Agent...
, whose character was not based on Reichs' books or the Brennan of her books but rather on the author herself. In the TV series, Temperance Brennan is played by Emily Deschanel. Reichs herself has stated that she sees the Tempe of the television series as a younger version of the novel Tempe. Reichs is an executive producer of the show, and oversees the forensic science aspect of the series. She also wrote the fifth season episode "The Witch in the Wardrobe," which shared some plot elements with her novel Devil Bones. On the show Temperance "Bones" Brennan writes crime novels with a fictional forensic anthropologist named Kathy Reichs as the protagonist.
Temperance Brennan also appears in the Jasper Fforde
Jasper Fforde
Jasper Fforde is a British novelist. Fforde's first novel, The Eyre Affair, was published in 2001. Fforde is mainly known for his Thursday Next novels, although he has written several books in the loosely connected Nursery Crime series and begun two more independent series: The Last Dragonslayer...
novel First Among Sequels.