“The Bone Tree” is the second novel in Greg Iles’ trilogy set in Mississippi and Louisiana. Totally almost 1600 pages, so far, Iles writes of family loyalty, racism, political and police corruption on a grand scale, and the secret lies and pasts of its main characters.
“The Bone Tree” picks up the story begun in “Natchez Burning.” The central characters are members of two families and their extended members. Dr. Tom Cage and his son Penn are well-respected members of the Natchez community. Dr. Tom treats all regardless of race and has for his entire career, but is without his dark side. His son, the newly elected mayor, earned a reputation as an assistant district attorney and a novelist.
The Knox family is the antithesis of what Cage and his son represent. Frank Knox, the patriarch of the family, his sons, nephews and members of Double Eagles are behind the most heinous acts of racism, and police corruption, involving the drug trade and murder in the Deep South.
Iles has taken what may sound like a often-told tale and infused it with suspense and characters, good and bad, who are multi-dimensional.
In “Natchez Burning” the author has set the scene introducing characters, plots and subplots, and ends with a cliff hanger. “The Bone Tree” picks up within a day or two of that ending. Do you have to read the first book in order to follow the plot of “The Bone Tree.” Yes and no. The author tries to inform the reader of important plot point established in the first book, but if you are going to invest time in reading “The Bone Tree,” you should begin with “Natchez Burning.”
One of the major subplots that was introduced in the first book of the trilogy was what role the Double Eagles, a group that is to the right of the KKK, played in the assassination of JFK. This subplot becomes a key element in the second book with fascinating insights into the role of organized crime in the assassination of the president.
The “Bone Tree” and “Natchez Burning” are good examples of exciting popular fiction. They marry history and suspense into definite page turners.