The Bone Keeper

Set in Liverpool, England, this formulaic thriller from Veste (the Murphy and Rossi novels) centers on a legendary bogeyman known as the Bone Keeper, who slices off the flesh of his victims and keeps the bones. A decade or more earlier, two girls and two boys seek out the Bone Keeper in a dark tunnel, the being’s supposed lair. They become scared and flee the tunnel, but one boy doesn’t make it out. In the present, Det. Constable Louise Henderson and her partner, Det. Sgt. Paul Shipley, investigate the case of Caroline Rickards, whom they interview in the hospital. Caroline, who has been attacked by someone who sliced the skin off multiple parts of her body, asserts that the Bone Keeper is real and responsible for her injuries. Her vague memories make reconstructing exactly what happened to her difficult. The plot follows well-worn grooves to its foregone conclusion and includes stock elements such as a lead who’s hiding dark secrets. Veste offers readers nothing they haven’t already seen before. Agent: Philip Patterson, Marjacq Scripts (U.K.). (Feb.)