As noted, Jupiter's Bones is Faye Kellerman's eleventh Peter Decker-Rina Lazarus mystery. Kellerman introduced the couple fifteen years ago, and has since published twelve novels with the characters. The most recent is The Forgotten (2001), which explores Decker's relationship with Jacob while investigating a series of murders with a direct connection to Jacob.

The Ritual Bath (1986), the first novel in the series, introduces Decker as he investigates a rape case in an isolated Orthodox Jewish community. Rina appears as the widow who discovers the victim, befriends Decker, and helps him investigate in the suspicious community. In the process, the two characters fall in love and marry. As in Jupiter's Bones, the novels in the series combine the couple's everyday problems with a criminal mystery. After The Ritual Bath, the novels in order are: Sacred and Profane (1987), Milk and Honey (1990), Day of Atonement(l99l), False Prophet (1992), Grievous...