Bone box / Faye Kellerman.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In this thrilling chapter in Faye Kellerman's bestselling series, Rina Lazarus makes a shocking discovery in the woods of her upstate New York community that leads her husband, police detective Peter Decker, through a series of gruesome, decades old, unsolved murders, pointing to a diabolical, serial killer who's been hiding in plain sight.

On a bright and crisp September morning, while walking a bucolic woodland trail, Rina Decker stumbles upon human remains once buried deep beneath the forest grounds. Immediately, she calls her husband, Peter, a former detective lieutenant with LAPD, now working for the local Greenbury Police. Within hours, a vista of beauty and tranquility is transformed into a frenetic crime scene. The body has been interred for years and there is scant physical evidence at the gravesite: a youthful skeleton, a skull wound and long dark strands of hair surrounding the bony frame. As Decker and his partner, Tyler McAdams, further investigate, they realize that they're most likely dealing with a missing student from the nearby Five Colleges of Upstate--a well-known and well-respected consortium of higher learning where Rina works.

And when more human remains are found in the same area, Decker and McAdams know this isn't just a one-off murder case. Short-staffed and with no convenient entry into the colleges, Decker enlists Rina's help to act as the eyes and ears of campus gossip. Winding their way through a dangerous labyrinth of steely suspects and untouchable academics, Decker, McAdams, and Rina race to protect their community from a psychopathic killer still in the area--and on the hunt for a fresh victim.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

In bestseller Kellerman's so-so 24th novel featuring Peter Decker, a retired LAPD homicide detective who now works for the Greenbury, N.Y., police, and his wife, Rina Lazarus (after 2015's The Theory of Death), a routine morning hike for Rina becomes the catalyst for the search for a serial killer after she accidentally steps on skeletal remains, which may belong to one of several students reported missing in recent years from the so-called Five Colleges of Upstate. Peter and his sidekick, Tyler McAdams, an affluent law student who's spending his summer with the police and has become a virtual family member, investigate; the pair eventually identify the victim, before more skeletons are unearthed in the area of the original find. Rina inserts herself into the case, despite her husband's fears for her safety. The plot line unfolds predictably, and there's no real emotional tension, despite a spat between Peter and Rina over watching TV. Series fans will be pleased to learn that the couple's twin grandsons, although only seven, are basketball prodigies at their Philadelphia school. (Feb.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

In their twenty-fourth outing, Rina Lazarus and her police-detective husband, Peter Decker, once again put their heads together to solve a crime. On a hike near their home in Upstate New York, Rina stumbles upon a skeletal hand. The hand is attached to a corpse that has been buried in the woods for years. Working from the estimated age of the body, Rina talks to an old friend at the Five Colleges of Upstate and learns of several missing students who might fit the bill. Assisting Decker in his official investigation is his young Ivy League partner, Tyler McAdams. Another solid procedural with a cast of characters who have come to feel like family to series fans. Peter and Rina's playful and supportive relationship will appeal to followers of other husband-and-wife crime-solving teams, including Stephen White's Alan Gregory and Lauren Crowder.--Keefe, Karen Copyright 2017 Booklist

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Faye Kellerman was born in St. Louis, Missouri on July 31, 1952. She received a B.A. in mathematics and a doctorate in dentistry from UCLA. Instead of becoming a dentist, she decided to become a writer after being inspired by the success of her husband, Jonathan Kellerman.

Her first novel, The Ritual Bath, won the 1987 Macavity Award for Best First Mystery. It also became the first book in the Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus Novel series, which consists of over 20 volumes. Her other books include Moon Music, The Quality of Mercy, Prism written with Aliza Kellerman, and Double Homicide and Capital Crimes written with Jonathan Kellerman. She received a lifetime achievement award from Strand Magazine on July 10, 2013. She made the New York Times Best Seller List in 2017 with her title Bone Box.

(Bowker Author Biography)