The Keepsake (Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles, #7)

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The Keepsake (Rizzoli & Isles #7)

by Tess Gerritsen (Goodreads Author)

3.93 · rating details · 4,767 ratings · 544 reviews

For untold years, the perfectly preserved mummy had lain forgotten in the dusty basement of Boston’s Crispin Museum. Dubbed “Madam X,” the recently rediscovered mummy is, to all appearances, an ancient Egyptian artifact. But medical examiner Maura Isles discovers a macabre message hidden within the corpse–horrifying proof that this “centuries-old” relic is instead a modern...more

Mass Market Paperback, 432 pages

Published August 25th 2009 by Ballantine Books (first published 2008)

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Aug 25, 2011

Burçak Kılıç rated it

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Tess her zamanki gibi döktürmüş valla.. Mumyalama teknikleri falan değişik bi kitap olmuş.. Yazarın kitaplarında en çok sevdiğim şey farklı bölümler verip hepsini sonuna doğru birbirine bağlaması :) Katilin çok şaşırttığını söyleyemeyeceğim ama yine işin içinde işler çıkıp tek suçlu katil olmuyor ;)) Ben seriyi okumayanlara kesinlikle tavsiye ediyorum mutlaka okuyun.. okutun ;))

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Nov 20, 2010

Birgit rated it

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Tess Gerritsen's seventh novel in the series is once again a fast paced read that's hard to put down, especially with Rizzoli being at her wittiest, sarcastic best.
This time it's the archeological or egyptian theme, to put it more precisely, that keeps the two leading ladies busy. Once again a well written book that certainly does the whole series justice, it felt like there could have been a bit more details regarding the personal lives of Rizzoli and Isles, as there are threads that lead ...more

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May 19, 2010

Dustin Crazy little brown owl rated it

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Shelves: read-in-2008, goodreads-authors, read-in-2010, amazing, worth-reading-again-and-again

Watch out Patricia Cornwell! Tess Gerritsen is at the top of her game with The Keepsake - the best novel I've read in a long time! I was really impressed with Gerritsen's The Bone Garden: A Novel published 2007, and thought it was her finest work to date, but The Keepsake may be even better! I am a slow reader, and was able to read the 349 pages of The Keepsake in less than a week. Chapters 17,18, and 19 seemed a little slow to me but the rest of the book is full of surprises!

One th...more

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Sep 08, 2008

Kelly rated it

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Shelves: reviewed

Tess Gerritsen’s The Keepsake is a fast moving, well-paced whodunit. Medical Examiner Maura Isles is called in to observe the CT scanning of a mummy for a museum. The observers are shocked to find the mummy isn’t ancient at all, but the well-preserved body of a modern murder victim. Solving the murder falls to Jane Rizzoli, a Boston police detective. Soon Rizzoli discovers other women who have been murdered and preserved using disturbing and macabre methods. Knowing the killer has chosen his ne...more

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Jul 19, 2011

İlkim rated it

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Shelves: thriller, favorites, books-i-own

Kesinlikle orijinal bir kurgu daha yaratmış Tess Gerritsen. Her okuduğum kitapta daha bir hayran kalıyorum kadına. Bu romanı da beklediğim gibi beni sardı. Metinde bazı hatalar vardı, konuşan karakterlerin isimlerini karıştırmışlar ama bu da o kadar önemli bir şey değildi. Romandaki baskın karakter Jane idi ve bu zaten kitabı bir anda sevmeme neden oldu. Dizideki Maura hoşuma gitse de kitaptaki Maura beni o kadar da çekmiyor. Ayrıca Frost bu romanda bir anda büyüdü gibi bir şey oldu. Sanırım ser...more

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Nov 30, 2008

Angela Germana rated it

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Tess Gerritsen's novels are a very good read. Many of them have endings that are unpredictable...which always wins me over. Nothing worse then starting a novel and knowing what will happen within the first 50 pages.

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Feb 23, 2009

Jennifer rated it

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For untold years, the perfectly preserved mummy had lain forgotten in the dusty basement of Boston's Crispin Museum. Now its sudden rediscovery by museum staff is both a major coup and an attention-grabbing mystery. Dubbed "Madam X," the mummy-to all appearances, an ancient Egyptian artifact-seems a ghoulish godsend for the financially struggling institution. But medical examiner Maura Isles soon discovers a macabre message hidden within the corpse-horrifying proof that this "cent...more

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May 10, 2011

Lady Kari rated it

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Tess Gerritsen's The Keepsake is the seventh book that revolves around Rizzoli and Isles (Gerritsen's dynamic duo). Though many of this series can be read out of order, if you haven't read the Mephisto Club yet it will ruin some parts of it for you, so be sure to read that one first before picking up The Keepsake.

As many of her books do, Gerritsen tend to pick up a second educational interest that goes along with the medical examiner/ criminal justice focus. In this particular book t...moreTess Gerritsen's The Keepsake is the seventh book that revolves around Rizzoli and Isles (Gerritsen's dynamic duo). Though many of this series can be read out of order, if you haven't read the Mephisto Club yet it will ruin some parts of it for you, so be sure to read that one first before picking up The Keepsake.

As many of her books do, Gerritsen tend to pick up a second educational interest that goes along with the medical examiner/ criminal justice focus. In this particular book that is Archaeology/Anthropology. I say both because part of the information really does have an anthropological teaching to it, yet there is a lot of reference to archeological processes and people.

Personally I enjoy learning something from books. Hard facts enshrouded in fictional storyline is a big draw for me, especially when the topics are well researched and detailed. The Keepsake is full of them, with well researched details. The balance that Gerritsen keeps is important though. She doesn't beat you across the face with two pages of technical jargon like she just stole a page from a research paper on the subject. She intersperses the information with the storyline and her own medical knowledge, combining everything into a nice neat package of historical detail and interesting plot line.

(view spoiler)

In The Keepsake, as in many of her books, the author relies heavily on the intelligence of the reader to be reading between the lines and figuring plot twists out before they happen with just a few clues. Her trust in the reader is double sided though. If they are seeing the pattern, then she is going to throw them off and give a twist to what she was building up to. If the reader doesn't notice, then there is no extra twist. (view spoiler)

Over all the book was hard to set down, as many of her books are. The mystery extends all the way to the very last pages, even when you thought it was over. The twists are always satisfying and the facts are always cold and hard. Another wonderful book by Tess Gerritsen with a flare of history for good measure.(less)

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Feb 23, 2011

Heather rated it

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Shelves: 2011

Titled "Keeping the Dead" in the Uk. Great read from a great author. I skipped one in the series to read this one but I didn't find any glaring plot holes in the personal stories of either Maura or Jane as a result of that which was a good thing. This does mean that I am now only a couple of books away from having read everything by Tess Gerritsen! It makes me weirdly proud. Specific to this book though, and my obvious love of the series and the author aside, this one stuck out to me f...moreTitled "Keeping the Dead" in the Uk. Great read from a great author. I skipped one in the series to read this one but I didn't find any glaring plot holes in the personal stories of either Maura or Jane as a result of that which was a good thing. This does mean that I am now only a couple of books away from having read everything by Tess Gerritsen! It makes me weirdly proud. Specific to this book though, and my obvious love of the series and the author aside, this one stuck out to me for a couple of reasons. Some of the minor characters were given a more prominent role in this novel: Barry Frost, Jane's partner, has been in all of the novels -- discounting The Surgeon I think, because she had an older partner in that who was a force veteran, I can't remember his name off the top of my head -- and his personality has always been well developed, he's the 'boy scout' and often the good cop to Rizzoli's bad cop. This time around we get to see a lot more of him, particularly his faults and failings as a man and naturally that's where the real substance and depth of a character tends to come from. I really enjoyed this and I really liked how the friendship/partnership of him and Rizzoli was handled.

There was less Maura in this book than in the last one, but that was okay because I think out of the two main female protagonists Rizzoli has always been my favourite anyway. I get the feeling though that the next novel is going to focus a bit more on Maura's private life; one of the main characters in The Mephisto Club surfaced a few times in this novel and I just know that's all going to come to a head sooner or later. Without spoiling anyone, I really hope that I think might happen actually happens eeee!

This was another rollercoaster of a book, the plot was so twisty towards the end I was left a bit dazed by who was who and what had really happened but in a good way, in a way that put me in the same boat as the characters who were trying to cut their way through the case. I feel like Gerritsen is really talented at leaving you just enough clues as a reader to know some of what's coming up in the resolution but keeping enough of the plot twists back so that while you might feel a bit blindsided you also feel liek you've worked some things out for yourself, which is always fun in a thriller. Fantastically enjoyable book!(less)

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Sep 18, 2010

J rated it

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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Archaeology is the motif, the setting and the job description for many of the characters in this book.

Interestingly, the cover depicts a butterfly collection, as the actual artifact collection in the story would be either too ugly or too telling (female homicide victims whose bodies have been preserved in several cultural styles - i.e., shrinken head, mummified, bog-preserved)

Hard to say if the main character is really Josephine P., the young archaeology PhD working in B...moreArchaeology is the motif, the setting and the job description for many of the characters in this book.

Interestingly, the cover depicts a butterfly collection, as the actual artifact collection in the story would be either too ugly or too telling (female homicide victims whose bodies have been preserved in several cultural styles - i.e., shrinken head, mummified, bog-preserved)

Hard to say if the main character is really Josephine P., the young archaeology PhD working in Boston at the Crispin museum, who oversees the CT scan of the museum's recently discovered mummy (who proves to not be 2,000 years old after all, but a modern homicide victim.)

The main character might be Josie's mother, the supposedly dead Medea Sommer. Or it could also be the police detective team of Jane Rizzolo and whatshisname Frost.

Anyway, the mother and daughter had been forced to assume false identities in order to try and disappear forever from the sick Bradley Rose (son of a rich archaeology sponsor)who has been stalking the mom.

But at book's start, Josephine's longtime cover starts to dissolve. She's been targeted by "Bradley" to flush out Josie's mother, whom even Josie thinks is dead.

Turns out Bradley is long dead, and not the mom. but his fellow sick-o Jimmy Scott keeps up the pursuit (covertly financed by Bradley's rich, corrupt dad.) Bradley and Jimmy had gotten to know each other as teens while confined for therapy at an expensive private facility for young sexual predators.

Interesting weaving of anthropology and psychology concepts throughout the crime story.

The book's non-demented characters - Josephine, Crispin museum curator Nicholas Ribonson, Med. Examiner Maura Whatshername and police officers Jane and Frost -- are all well developed, realistically likeable and annoying by turns.

Book does not tread into the story's difficult aftermath: How does a loving mother convince her fraught daughter that she (mom) disappeared out of love for same daughter? Even tho Medea reappears at the precise moment to help save Josie, certainly the daughter will have a hard time forgiving her all those years of absence.

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Aug 15, 2010

Mmyoung rated it

Shelves: police-procedural, thriller

I decided to read this book purely because I saw an episode of Rizzoli and Isles and I wanted to know how much the television version of these characters strayed from the written versions.

My very short review of this book is that it is far better than the television show based on it and I am definitely going to read at least one more Gerritsen before deciding what I think of her as a writer.

Episodic television shows and thrillers differ in ways far beyond the superficial...moreI decided to read this book purely because I saw an episode of Rizzoli and Isles and I wanted to know how much the television version of these characters strayed from the written versions.

My very short review of this book is that it is far better than the television show based on it and I am definitely going to read at least one more Gerritsen before deciding what I think of her as a writer.

Episodic television shows and thrillers differ in ways far beyond the superficial. Rizzoli and Isles is a lightly plotted (as in you had better duck or you might get hit by the trucks driving through those plot holes) buddy show. The big twist is that the buddies are both women. Imagine Bones if you had Bones as a medical examiner and Booth as a woman. When you only have 42 minutes in which to tell a story you tend to make the story fairly straightforward. Thrillers, especially ones written and published in the era of the doorstop sized book, can take their time, fill in back story, let the reader go away and think about things for a while. Television shows cannot afford to do any of those things. There is more need on television shows to trot out all your characters at least once a show while the written form encourages the exploration of what characters are thinking and feeling even if it doesn't really advance the plot.

To move from the general to the specific. Some parts of The Keepsake seems to be included not because they advance the story but because they advance larger arc stories that run from book to book. For example, the several chapters that focus on Isles personal life may seem irrelevant to someone new to the series and as does the times spent on the deterioration of Frost's marriage and Rizzoli's concerns in dealing with the dissolution of her own parents marriage. Because I choose to read this book after seeing the television show this concentration on what seems to be a superfluous character is less jarring than if I had randomly picked up the book because of the cover blurb -- just as they would not be jarring to readers who had read previous books in the series. The reader who picks up this book at random will find many textual clues that indicate that it is part, though not the first, of a series.

As for the story itself it is definitely a page turner. I read it in basically one gulp. I disliked the focus on torturing women and hope that is not a constant theme in Gerritsen's work. Some of the police procedural details seem lightly sketched in and, as is often the case in books such as this, it isn't so much that the detectives do great work it is more a matter that criminals escalate their behaviour and/or kill off suspects to the point where "whodunnit" is fairly obvious.

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Jul 02, 2010

Alisha rated it

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Shelves: e-books-i-ve-read, mystery-thriller

I have found that it is a bit difficult to write a review on a book that's part of a series, particularly if you have reviewed most of the other books in the series. Chances are that most of what you say in the newest review is going to sound repetitive. Regardless of whether you liked it or not. But, still, review I must. So, I'm going to say that while I have stated my love for the Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles many times in my numerous reviews, The Keepsake was the first one that I felt sort...moreI have found that it is a bit difficult to write a review on a book that's part of a series, particularly if you have reviewed most of the other books in the series. Chances are that most of what you say in the newest review is going to sound repetitive. Regardless of whether you liked it or not. But, still, review I must. So, I'm going to say that while I have stated my love for the Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles many times in my numerous reviews, The Keepsake was the first one that I felt sort of "meh" about. Wow! Typing that sentence nearly killed me and now I feel ashamed...

Let's start with the good: the archeology. This was something that I found absolutely fascinating (well, you know, that and the shruken heads) and could not get enough of. That's what I love about Tess Gerritsen's mysteries. Sure, it focuses mainly on the whodunit (is there a more amusing word than "whodunit"? Besides "oy", I mean), but they're usually set to a backdrop of some really intriguing premise. In The Mephisto's Club it was nephilism and here in The Keepsake it's archeology. And, boy do I love it when a novel I'm reading teaches me about things I didn't have a clue about before. I really wished that Gerritsen would've expanded on this just a tiny bit more because it was my favorite part (besides Jane Rizzoli and her utter awesomeness, I mean).

This is book 7 in the series, so obviously by now I'm in tune with the characters since I keep reading. Jane Rizzoli was all types of on in this book. Usually, I like her anyway, but in The Keepsake, I loved her! From being all Mama Bear with Frost to her sometimes dry sense of humor that's so dry you can't really tell if she's joking or not, she was just great. Definitely my favorite character in this one. Barry Frost was another one that I was endeared to. He's just so sweet and dopey. Although, that whole "losing objectivity in the face of an attractive woman" thing was sort of grating, though.

Here comes the "while not bad, it definitely was annoying" part of the review: Maura Isles. She's usually my favorite character in most of these books. But in The Keepsake, she really didn't serve a purpose besides whining about her relationship with the priest. This was made even more obvious by the fact that she was gone for half the novel. Seriously, I was halfway through when I suddenly thought "Wait! Where's Maura?". It just seemed like the author had shipped her off to destinations unknown. Just as suddenly as it hit me that Maura wasn't there, there she was again. But she came back to the plot in a way that had me believing that Gerritsen forgot about her for a bit and thought "Crap! I've been so focused on everything else, I forgot all about Maura. Well, maybe, I can plug her in right here and explain it using this lame plot point..." Well, it didn't really work.

So, I have to say that The Keepsake might've been my least favorite of the series (I hesitate to say "worst" because Tess Gerritsen's "worst" is a lot better than most mystery authors' "best"), but I can't really complain (more than I have above) because it was a quick page-turner and it kept me intrigued. And I'm still looking forward to the next book (which I have right next to me and am trying to restrain myself from reading it for at least a week) and I'm so excited for the Rizzoli & Isles series that premieres on TNT in about a week and a half.
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Jun 21, 2010

David rated it

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Shelves: completed

The Keepsake is another competent thriller from author Tess Gerritsen. This time, Isles and Rizzoli encounter a murdered who preserves his victim's bodies, after holding them hostage for a period of time.

In order to write this one, Gerritsen had to do some research on preservation methods of human remains and comes up with a number of variations on this theme that are spooky as all heck. She also creates several small mysteries surrounding the big mystery.

Rizzoli an...more

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Sep 07, 2009

Christy rated it

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The discovery of a preserved mummy in the basement of Boston’s Crispin Museum causes much media attention. Egyptologist/ archeologist Josephine Pulcillo, in hopes of not disturbing the wrappings, plans to scan the mummy beforehand to see what they can learn. Medical examiner Maura Isles is invited to be present for the scan and discovers this is no Egyptian mummy of ancient times but a woman who died more recently. When a shrunken head is discovered behind a wall in the museum, homicide detecti...more

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Jul 10, 2009

Kayeb rated it

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Seems to be a theme in books I am reading lately....more of the person from teh past coming forward to exact revenge. I enjoy Gerritsen.

[close:] New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen knows how to expertly dissect a brilliantly suspenseful story, all the while keeping fascinated readers riveted to her side. By turns darkly enthralling and relentlessly surprising, The Keepsake showcases an author at the peak of her storytelling powers.

For untold years, t...more
Seems to be a theme in books I am reading lately....more of the person from teh past coming forward to exact revenge. I enjoy Gerritsen.

[close:] New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen knows how to expertly dissect a brilliantly suspenseful story, all the while keeping fascinated readers riveted to her side. By turns darkly enthralling and relentlessly surprising, The Keepsake showcases an author at the peak of her storytelling powers.

For untold years, the perfectly preserved mummy had lain forgotten in the dusty basement of Boston’s Crispin Museum. Now its sudden rediscovery by museum staff is both a major coup and an attention-grabbing mystery. Dubbed “Madam X,” the mummy–to all appearances, an ancient Egyptian artifact–seems a ghoulish godsend for the financially struggling institution. But medical examiner Maura Isles soon discovers a macabre message hidden within the corpse–horrifying proof that this “centuries-old” relic is instead a modern-day murder victim.

To Maura and Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli, the forensic evidence is unmistakable, its implications terrifying. And when the grisly remains of yet another woman are found in the hidden recesses of the museum, it becomes chillingly clear that a maniac is at large–and is now taunting them.
Archaeologist Josephine Pulcillo’s blood runs cold when the killer’s cryptic missives are discovered, and her darkest dread becomes real when the carefully preserved corpse of yet a third victim is left in her car like a gruesome offering–or perhaps a ghastly promise of what’s to come.

The twisted killer’s familiarity with post-mortem rituals suggests to Maura and Jane that he may have scientific expertise in common with Josephine. Only Josephine knows that her stalker shares a knowledge even more personally terrifying: details of a dark secret she had thought forever buried.

Now Maura must summon her own dusty knowledge of ancient death traditions to unravel his twisted endgame. And when Josephine vanishes, Maura and Jane have precious little time to derail the Archaeology Killer before he adds another chilling piece to his monstrous collection.(less)

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May 29, 2009

Douglas rated it

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Shelves: mystery, borrowed

This was a good mystery. I swallowed it up in one evening, so the story was engaging and kept my attention. I found the ghoulish keepsake deaths well detailed and exotic. Gerritsen's medical background added enough realism to ground the story, but not so much realism that I was bored. Many of the characters were well fleshed out and entertaining to read about. The pacing of the story was also well done.

My only quibbles were as follows:

1) After such a well-paced and susp...more

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Jul 29, 2011

Stuart rated it

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The Keepsake by Tess Gerritsen. I bought this at an airport when my plane was delayed three hours, and finished it before the plane took off. You’ll gather it’s an easy read. But an enjoyable one, nonetheless. It is the seventh Rizzoli and Isles book. The story starts when an apparently newly discovered Egyptian mummy is taken to a Boston hospital for an X-ray scan. Dr Maura Isles is present, and when the X-Ray reveals a bullet, the mummy becomes a criminal case. The mummy is quickly joined by...more

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Jul 26, 2011

Marianne rated it

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Keeping The Dead is the 7th in Tess Gerritsen’s Rizzoli/Isles series. Maura Isles is invited to be present for the CT scan on a mummy recently found in the basement of the Crispin museum. When the scan first shows a dental filling, and then a bullet lodged in the calf, a historical find becomes a murder investigation, and Jane Rizzoli takes the case. As more bodies, or parts of bodies, are uncovered, an association with archaeology becomes apparent. The target seems to be Josephine Pulcillo, an ...more

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Feb 10, 2011

Maria rated it

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I bought this book at a lovely store in Notting Hill. I am not really into thrillers and stuff like that but this author, Tess Gerritsen, caught my attention because of the TV Show Rizzoli and Isles. I didn't really know what to expect when I bought it because I hadn't read any of the series' books. Still, as it was quite cheap and I was about to go on holidays, I decided it would be nice to give it a go and I am so glad I did. I couldn't put it down... it was like the story was hunting me as mu...more

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Jan 14, 2012

Stacia rated it

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Shelves: crime-fiction, 2012

I started reading the Rizzoli & Isles series because I enjoy the TV show, but it quickly became clear to me that they are two completely separate entities. Although I do visualize (and hear) the TV characters as I read, that's really the only thing that carries over; the R&Z interaction that is the heart of the TV program is largely absent from the books, each of which focuses on one of the women, with the other making relatively brief appearances. That doesn't affect my enjoyment of the books o...more

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Mar 27, 2010

Liz rated it

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Recommends it for: james patterson fans

Recommended to Liz by: alison cardone (stepmom)

Shelves: mystery-suspense

I really enjoyed this suspense-filled book. Medea Sommers is pregnant with a child, and is constantly on the run after she supposedly shoots a friend of the fathers who is psychopath. Changes names and towns very often, all Medea knows is to run. As Josie grows up she has been through numerous names but has moved on with her life working for the Crispin Museum as an Egyptologist when a mummified woman is found in the basements collection. They learn that the woman is from present day and not...moreI really enjoyed this suspense-filled book. Medea Sommers is pregnant with a child, and is constantly on the run after she supposedly shoots a friend of the fathers who is psychopath. Changes names and towns very often, all Medea knows is to run. As Josie grows up she has been through numerous names but has moved on with her life working for the Crispin Museum as an Egyptologist when a mummified woman is found in the basements collection. They learn that the woman is from present day and not from Egypt. They also discover shrunken heads of modern day women. Josie gets the surprise of her life when she discovers a woman in her truck while on a hike looking for a person whom knows her original last name who sent her a letter with coordinates on it. One thing in common with all the dead women with Josie is the looks. As the detectives investigate they learn of Josie's false past and learn the truth. The delve into looking for Bradley Rose, the supposed killer. They encounter a tough obstacle in Bradley's father. His father is will known in the archeological circles and has loads of money to get whatever he wants. Towards the end of the book, Josie is captured and held captive in a darkened cellar, however she tries to escape to only be stopped by a face she recognizes. As Jane investigates, someone steps forward to Detective Frost. Surprisingly it is Josie's mother whom everyone thought was dead. As the tale unravels, we learn that it was Bradley Rose that was killed in the apartment in San Diego when Josie was a teenager and not Jimmy Otto whom his sister identified. Mr. Rose is also wrapped up in making everyone believe it is Otto that is killed to, for his wife's sake. The killer who currently has Josie knows that Medea is still alive and the only way for her to surface is by keeping Josie alive. As the detectives break this case, Jimmy and Carrie (his sister) are both killed when Medea steps forward to them. Josie is set free. Medea has her day with Mr. Rose and is shot, but she is wearing a wire and kevlar vest and the police are there to witness Mr. Rose committing suicide. Finally for the first time in Medea and Josie's life are they able to live and not run.(less)

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Oct 13, 2010

Sylvia rated it

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True to fashion, Tess Gerritsen delivers another suspenseful masterpiece. No her novels may not be literary gold mines but as far as Mystery/ Suspense goes she's carved out her own special place, at least in my library. I have yet to read one of her books and not thoroughly enjoy it from beginning to end. (Note: I have not read any of her romance novels)

The Keepsake is a fast paced well researched novel that brings the ancient smack dab into the present. With twists and turns that ...more

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Sep 18, 2011

Jerry rated it

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“Keepsake”, the seventh (of nine currently) novel in Gerritsen’s popular Rizzoli & Isles series, now even more recognized due to the concurrent TV show, seemed to us somehow out of sync with her recent stories. ME Maura Isles really had little but a bit part, and the dynamics of her affair with a Catholic priest are getting weird. Meanwhile, fairly new mom Jane Rizzoli, while the main crime solver in this tale, barely mentioned her own daughter and husband, their presence important in the last...more

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Nov 30, 2010

Guillermo rated it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Picking up the summer after the events of The Mephisto Club, The Keepsake opens with Maura Isles entering Pilgrim Hospital to witness the event of the century - the CT scanning of Madam X, a mummy found in the basement of the Crispin Museum. There she is introduced to Dr. Nicolas Robinson, museum's curator, and Dr. Josephine Pulcillo, the museum's Egyptologist. As the scan is processed, the three doctors - as do the other witnesses - notice something anachronistic. Lodged in the leg, there is a ...morePicking up the summer after the events of The Mephisto Club, The Keepsake opens with Maura Isles entering Pilgrim Hospital to witness the event of the century - the CT scanning of Madam X, a mummy found in the basement of the Crispin Museum. There she is introduced to Dr. Nicolas Robinson, museum's curator, and Dr. Josephine Pulcillo, the museum's Egyptologist. As the scan is processed, the three doctors - as do the other witnesses - notice something anachronistic. Lodged in the leg, there is a bullet and a broken bone that had started the process of healing. Suddenly this thousand year discovery became a modern day crime, one that has Detective Jane Rizzoli taking the lead.

I wouldn't know where to start with The Keepsake. Part of me was hoping the book would get interesting, while another wanted to put the book down and just start Ice Cold - the series's eighth novel. It's uncertain if Tess Gerritsen's heart wasn't in the book when writing, or when mine was absent when reading it, but the book seemed like it was written on some deadline. It lacked the essential thing that kept me turning the pages of the other novels - suspense. The only time I felt like I was on the edge of my seat was when I noticed how many pages I had left. My reading pace became slacked. I didn't care about the victims or the killer(s) presented in the novel. Already, things were sounding alarms in my head, so when the revealing of the killer(s) was brought up, there was no mind blowing revelations - the aha experience* wasn't present in the conclusion, especially when the mastermind was revealed.

While Maura Isles is the first on the scene in the novel, her presence - and importance - in the novel is minimum. Her relationship with Father Daniel Brophy, which blossomed in The Mephisto Club, is continued in the novel. His relationship with the church, however, is still an unresolved issue. Anthony Sansone - of the Mephisto Foundation -is brought in as the other guy, even though that never really takes off, either. The novel's ending simple has Jane thinking of Maura and Daniel's relationship, rather some resolution from the characters. We can only assume that something will happen in Ice Cold that wraps that plot line up, though - after the reading the front flap of the novel, I seriously doubt we'll get the closer we need on Maura's character.

The only good part of the novel was the character build-up of Detective Barry Frost. Finally, after seven novels, we get a little bit of insight of his abilities and his relationship with Alice - his heard of but never seen (until now) wife. Whether we learn more about his life after the novel, is still up in the air - unless you already Ice Cold, in which case, don't tell me.

I look forward to reading the final novel (thus far, anyway), but will be reluctant to ever read this one again.(less)

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Jan 04, 2009

Kathleen Hagen added it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2008-mysteries-suspense, 2008-audio-books

The Keepsake, by Tess Gerritsen, produced by Random House Audio, B-plus. Narrated by Deidre Lovejoy.Downloaded to audible.com.

This is the latest in the Maura Isles and Jane Rizoli series. Jane, a homicide lieutenant, and Maura, a coroner, are called to a museum because a mummy the museum didn’t know it had was uncovered, and it turned out to house a much more recent body wrapped in archeological mummy wrappings. As the story continues, victims keep turning up from the near presen...more

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Jul 29, 2011

Nancy added it · review of another edition

Archeology, mummies, and murder. We start in the hospital where they are about to scan the latest greatest find of the Crispen museum, a mummy. Dr. Isles is present, as is the Discovery channel and what they will find surprises them and sets off a chain of events that ranges across the country and through time. Jane Rizzoli as always the strong lead deals with layers of lies and protection as she chases a killer that mummifies his victims. The killer has been chasing an obsession of a long s...more

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Jan 01, 2009

Cheryl rated it

· review of another edition

Homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and forensic examiner Maura are back in Ms. Gerritsen’s latest novel, The Keepsake.

Archaeologist Josephine Pulcillo is one of the youngest and most beautiful women in her field. Josephine is very excited about her latest discovery involving a mummy called “Madam X”. Upon further review, it is determined that the mummy is not an actual mummy but in fact a murder victim. When Jane goes to investigate the location, where the body was discovered at, she g...more

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Oct 19, 2011

Barbra rated it

· review of another edition

I love this series but I'm afraid this one just didn't hold me at all. I did try and get into it but ended up not finishing it.

Back Cover Blurb:
When an ancient mummy is discovered in the basement of a museum in downtown Boston, excitement starts to mount. Under the glare of media frenzy, the mummy is taken to hospital for a CT scan. Forensic pathologist Maura Isles is invited to attend.
As the CT scan proceeds everyone in the room leans in - and gasps in horror as an image...more

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Jul 14, 2010

Abbie rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-detective, death

I'm struggling with how many stars to give this book. The best thing about it is the creativity of the murders. The killer experiments with different forms of preservation, and this one had a great beginning. When a local museum discovers a mummy tucked away in the basement, they take it in for scannng at the hospital, but it soon becomes clear that this is not an ancient mummy. Jane Rizzoli is now on the hunt for a killer who likes to preserve his victims. Rizzoli's story is interspersed wi...more

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Sep 11, 2009

Michelle rated it

· review of another edition

Tess Gerritsen's series of medical thrillers aren't the typical medical thriller in the strain of Kathy Reichs and Patricia Cornwell. Gerritsen's books seem to focus more on the action and less on the medical procedures, so while the medical aspects fill out the story and add relevant details, the story is never bogged down with them.

In this book, Jane Rizzoli and her partner Frost are investigating a mysterious set of murders dating back decades where the bodies have been preserved u...more

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About Tess Gerritsen

Internationally bestselling author Tess Gerritsen took an unusual route to a writing career. A graduate of Stanford University, Tess went on to medical school at the University of California, San Francisco, where she was awarded her M.D.

While on maternity leave from her work as a physician, she began to write fiction. In 1987, her first novel was published. Call After Midnight, a roman...more

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Books by Tess Gerritsen

The Surgeon (Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles, #1)

The Apprentice (Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles, #2)

Body Double (Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles, #4)

The Mephisto Club (Jane Rizzoli & Maura Isles, #6)

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“The heart makes its choices without weighing the consequences. It doesn't look ahead to the lonely nights that follow.” — 41 people liked it

“Deves prestar sempre atenção aos teus sonhos, ensinara-lhe a mãe. São vozes que te dizem o que já sabes, sussurrando-te conselhos que ainda não seguiste.” — 1 person liked it

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The Keepsake (Rizzoli & Isles #7)

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