Bones, brings her bestselling blend of science and suspense to teens with the first in a new series, Virals. Tory is the science-obsessed niece of a famous forensic anthropologist, Temperance Brennan (star of the Bones program and novels), living on a remote island off the coast of South Carolina. An old military ID tag leads Tory and her best friends, Ben, Hi, and Shelton--all self proclaimed “sci-philes”--to an illegal research lab, where they are exposed to a mutant strain of canine parvovirus. When the teens begin experiencing preternatural physical changes, their search for answers brings them in contact with cold-blooded killers. Reichs’s characters are realistically drawn modern teenagers, and the state-of-the-art forensic details give this thriller an added edge. Short, heart-pounding chapters move the action forward at breakneck speed and the satisfying conclusion sets the tone for the next installment (coming in summer of 2011). --Seira Wilson

Tory Brennan, transplanted from New England to South Carolina after her mother’s death, is getting used to life with her hitherto-unknown marine-biologist father when life throws her a curve in the form of an odd virus. Along with her friends—a multiethnic group of science nerds all living, like her, on a remote barrier island—Tory finds a set of military ID tags linked to a missing-person’s case. The subsequent sleuthing exposes the gang to a disease, leaving them with heightened senses that flare when they’re in danger. They get plenty of opportunities to exercise their powers of intense sight, smell, and hearing in this suspenseful, if a bit exaggerated, plot-driven novel by the creator of the Bones TV drama. Despite one-dimensional villains, the book flows and is full of snappy dialogue guaranteed to draw in adventure junkies. Grades 6-9. --Karen Cruze