The Unquiet Bones

A Novel

By: Loreth Anne White

Narrated by: Carly Robins

Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

A shocking discovery of human bones reopens an almost fifty-year-old cold case—and rips apart the lives of a group of friends—in a riveting novel by Loreth Anne White, the Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestselling author of The Maid’s Diary.

When human bones are found beneath an old chapel in the woods, evidence suggests the remains could be linked to the decades-old case of missing teen Annalise Jansen.

Homicide detective Jane Munro—pregnant and acutely attuned to the preciousness of life—hopes the grim discovery will finally bring closure to the girl’s family. But for a group of Annalise’s old friends, once dubbed the Shoreview Six by the media, it threatens to expose a terrible pledge made on an autumn night forty-seven years ago.

The friends are now highly respected, affluent members of their communities, and none of them ever expected the dark chapter in their past to resurface. But as Jane and forensic anthropologist Dr. Ella Quinn peel back the layers of secrets, the group begins to fracture. Will one cave? Will they turn on each other?

The investigation takes a sharp turn when Jane discovers a second body—that of the boy long blamed for Annalise’s disappearance. As the bones tell their story, the group learns just how far each will go to guard their own truth.

©2024 by Cheakamus House Publishing. (P)2024 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Fans of Louise Penny should try this gripping story from White that combines the best elements of a cold-case investigation with a well-developed suspense novel.”—Library Journal (starred review)

“[A] thought-provoking cold-case mystery.”—Manhattan Book Review

“A deftly crafted and simply riveting read from fist page to last…”—Midwest Book Review

Great all around!

I enjoyed this listen! Couldn't get enough. The various characters and off-shoots of each contributed perfectly to a great whodunit. Enjoyed the narrator as well.

Great story, tough subject matter

I really enjoyed this book, the multiple points of view, and the jumping from past to present. The subject matter is tough, so definitely beware before reading. Great writing and story though

Excellent story and narration

Highly recommend! I wish this was part of a series. I’d love to revisit some of these characters.

Unquiet and Disquieting

Ms White’s work is now an automatic add to my TBR list. But this one went to the top because I just finished the Angie Pallorino series. When I read the book description for this novel, I knew I had to read it because how could an author forget about a character or have characters with the same name?! I need to know the answer!

Le sigh… The answer is the author has used the same name for two different victims. Why? No clue especially since an author names and/or re-names all characters. Is this because Ms White has written so many stories she can’t keep track of names she’s used? And/or her editor? May I suggest that someone on Ms White’s team create and maintain such a list.

Anyhoo, back to the story and my review 😅 This wasn’t as rich and enthralling as the Pallorino series. It’s all about a bunch entitled, privileged white teenagers and the lies they told — told to one another and mostly to themselves. The lies come back to bite them all 47 years later.

(Spoiler for the Angie Pallorino series: In book one of the Pallorino series, Angie had a case of a missing young woman named Annalise Janssen that went unsolved… until the third book of the trilogy. Angie rescues her from a serial murderer. Once again, Angie is in the media only this time she shares it with her former partner, Kjel Holgersen.)

Part of the Kindle Unlimited catalog.

Great Listen

I have never listened to a bad Loreth Anne White book. Very much enjoyed the story with fitting ends to some messed up people. Carly Robins is always outstanding so Unquiet Bones was a win win for me!!

Great characters, realistic MC

Enjoyed this story and all the twists and turns! I will definitely read more from this author.

Unexpected ending

This was my first listen by this author, and I’ll look for more books by her. I didn’t know the outcome until the very end and didn’t expect it. The many characters kept me guessing. I did have to back up a few times, because the character perspective did jump around quite a bit, but overall, I enjoyed it.

Twisty plot and characters!

Love how this author engages my senses and curiosity, then pulls a total surprise. Also enjoy the BC Canada setting.

Excellent read

Loreth Anne White does it again, I could hardly stop listening! Sad story. Good read!

Not my favorite 

This was a OK story. For some reason I just didn’t like the jumping around from the different characters. I also didn’t like some of the political views that were stated. as if they were fat.  I am usually a huge fan of this author, and all of her books that I’ve read prior to this one.