I picked up this book because I thought it would be a fantastic book. Archaeology? Check. Mystery? Check. Series? Check. I wanted to love it. I just like it.

Ruth is a forensic archaeologist, which is fascinating to me. I'm a bit jealous, actually. But this series hasn't crossed into "favorite series" territory for me, at least not yet. My nitpicks: Ruth constantly complains about her weight and is jealous of basically all other women in the world because of it, despite having men hitting on her all of the time. She has a real beef with her parents because they are Born Again Christians. You are nearly 40, Ruth. Be an adult, accept that they hold different beliefs than you, and move on. Or cut ties. And I have a real issue with violence against animals and children, and extra-marital affairs. This book hits all of my hot buttons. But I bought the first four books before reading any of them, so I will at least read through those before giving up on Ruth and company.

(And the mystery did keep me guessing--it had a lot of twists and red herrings, so that's nice.)