::READERS REVIEWS::

Cruel and Unusual - I am very fond of Patricia Cornwell and have the full collection. I am updating my paperback to hardback and first editions/signed. Amazon has been especially helpful in finding these items.

Fingerprints - Cornwell takes hold of your mind and does to let go until Scarpetta finds her solution. There is a horrible crime scene but it does produce some fingerprints. This is an easy case for Scarpetta until there is a match. It was a match to murderer that was executed before this murder. Read the book it is a good one. By Ruth Thompson author of "The Bluegrass Dream" and "Natchez Above The River"

Good Deal and Fast Shipping - I bought this book used and it was in very good condition. Also, I received it within a week, which was nice.

formula type writing - My first foray into this writer was her latest book, Scarpetta. I enjoyed it....so I purchased this effort and several others she had written. I was a bit disheartened to find that all of her books have basically the same formula and character studies. After a while reading her work becomes less than stimulating. It becomes trite.

One of the Better Books in the Scarpetta Series - This book is a great page-turner, perfect for the beach, plane or vacation.

The chief medical examiner, Kay Scarpetta, is being framed and she needs to prove herself innocent. The framing involves alleging that she is tampering with the autopsy results of Ronnie Waddell, an executed murderer. Meanwhile, murders are occurring that carry Waddell's M.O. How could he have committed these murders if he's been electrocuted? However, his fingerprints turn up at the crime scenes.

This book is well-written and conceived as well as fun to read.

Excellent first half, unfocussed and over-the-top second half - 'Cruel And Unusual' won Patricia Cornwell the CWA's Gold Dagger award, suggesting that those in the know regard it as her best Scarpetta book. I'm not so sure. The first half is excellent, raising the baffling and unsettling prospect of a killer committing murders from Beyond The Grave. But I feel the book badly loses focus in the second half, resulting in a rushed and somewhat anti-climactic conclusion.

Note that this book sets up a story thread through the next two books, so you must read this before tackling 'The Body Farm' and 'From Potters Field'.

To the story itself: convicted murderer Ronnie Waddell has just been executed. But when a young boy is found murdered in a strikingly similar fashion, Scarpetta, Marino and Wesley are forced to consider a number of disturbing possibilites. Is there a copycat killer? Or was the wrong man sentenced to the chair? This part of the book is well written, with a strong focus on the forensic science, as well as a study of Waddell himself and the crime he allegedly committed. But when another "copycat" killing turns up Waddell's fingerprint, things take a very bizzare twist.

Here is where the book loses me. Instead of considering more logical possibilities about how a dead man's fingerprint might have got somewhere, Scarpetta and Co jump to the most extraordinary conclusion. The idea that Waddell could (a) convince another person to go to the chair for him, and (b) organise smuggling the imposter in and himself out, is ridiculous. Also, the latter part of the book is increasingly taken up with an investigation into Scarpetta herself, dragging her into court on the flimsiest of "evidence". Cornwell really lets her poor-woman-persecuted-by-evil-sexist-men theme go over the top here. Arrogant oaf Patterson may be, but to pin a multiple murder on Scarpetta? It's silly.

The end result is that the conclusion to the book is incredibly rushed. It literally takes place within the last few pages, and is based on little more than a sudden hunch from Scarpetta. Combined with the fact that the finale is deliberately open-ended, the whole thing comes across as a huge anti-climax. While it does provide the perfect lead-in to 'The Body Farm', as a stand-alone ending I can only remember how cheated I felt when I first read the book.

So in all, a great beginning that's let down by a confused and unfocussed conclusion. The central plot is clever and the investigation is interesting, but it's disappointing Cornwell seems to lose the thread of the story badly in the second half.

[3.5 stars].

Cruel & Unusual - Received the book promptly and in great condition. Thank you Amazon for the opportunity to buy used books.

Woah- what happened between All That Remains and Cruel & Unusual?? Too many plot holes - Who is Dr. Kay Scarpetta? Let her tell you:

"I was a physician with a law degree. I had been trained to know what gave life and what took it, what was right and what was wrong. Then experience had become my mentor, wiping its feet on that pristine part of myself that was idealistic and analytical. It is disheartening when a thinking person is forced to admit that many cliches are true. There is no justice on this earth. Nothing would ever undo what Ronnie Joe Waddell had done." (p. 6)

Scarpetta is a the medical examiner and Waddell, recently executed inmate, is her latest case. The Waddell case won't be so easy, and it turns out his prints are showing up at crimes during and after his execution. Was the wrong person executed? Waddell's prints are in "the system". Speaking of systems, who broke into Scarpetta's computer? And why are her two employees, Ben and Susan, acting strangely? On top of this, Scarpetta has to "babysit" her sidekick and her niece. Her sidekick, Pete Marino, is a cop who can't get over the end of his marriage. With bad health habits and a sour disposition, Scarpetta has to constantly remind Marino to watch out for himself. And her niece, Lucy, has gone from being a fat little kid to a thin, super intelligent math and science whiz. Lucy is now a bratty 17- year old with a terrible attitude. But hey, she can help Scarpetta with the computer, so it's worth having Lucy around! (I think Lucy is supposed to be annoying- it makes her more realistic.)

So, it appears Scarpetta has to figure out why Waddell's prints are appearing at new crimes and why other people are being murdered. Simple enough, right? Yes, but it doesn't stay simple. Cornwell makes the plot extremely hole-ridden with little sidetracks. Scarpetta's missing her lover, Mark James. She's trying to make amends with flakey morgue attendant Susan Story. Professionally, Scarpetta's in A LOT of trouble, and the government nor the media will give her space. She also has to deal with the families of the deceased, who move in and out of the story, sometimes reappearing, and sometimes disappearing into thin air. These details bog down what could be an excellent thriller.

What I do like - the vivid descriptions of Virginia winters. Completely spot on, and it makes me look forward to a break in my current sticky, summer weather. :)
The medical procedures are described in detail - electric chair executions, autopsies, fatal gun shot wounds, etc.

Again, though, Cornwell does "too much of a good thing" by getting overly technical with the description of Robyn Naismith's/Sam Potter's residence. As for the mysterious feathers, again, too much detail is given to the what, where, why and how's of orinthology. Too many pages devoted to the types of feathers in down. Bo-ring!

This is an average read. I am not encouraging you to run to your local bookstore, because it would be a total waste of money. When you have time, and space on your library card account, check out this book. BUT, do not make it your first Scarpetta novel, because it will turn you away from the series!

Inproper Advertising - I needed to replace a lost CD set of the library CD book: Cruel and Unusual by Patricia Cornwell. The one I ordered from Amazon was listed as a CD set (not as a cassette set) so I ordered it. I received a Cassette set of the book and NOT a CD set of the book. I wrote (through Amazon) to the seller and their reply was that I received a CD set.
The Librarians can vouch for what I received as I showed them the envelope and the contents within it. Even though it was my responsibility to replace the CD book (so I wouldn't have to pay the Library charge), I now had to give that job to the library. Need I say more?
This time, and it's the first time, Amazon has a very disgruntled customer.
Thanks for asking for the review. Maybe Amazon could check into this and prevent others from experiencing what I experienced.
Sincerely,
Sherry Bohm
P.S. Yes, my husband and I are still Amazon shoppers. We're just going to have to be more careful now.