Book Review of Book 28 of 28 in the Kay Scarpetta series.
Patricia Cornwell sold her first novel, Postmortem, in 1990 while working at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Richmond, Virginia.
During that same time period, I was working for a Medical Examiner in Mid-Missouri and found the whole subject of the work of medical examiners fascinating and interesting. Thus, Postmortem appealed to me. After reading it, I immediately became a fan of author Patricia Cornwell. As a matter of fact, during that time my boss attended a medical examiner meeting on the East Coast and actually met Patricia Cornwell.
Cornwell has written several series, but her most well-known one is that featuring Kay Scarpetta, a Medical Examiner in Virginia, as the main character. This is my review of her latest book in the series, Book #28 ~ Identity Unknown.
Synopsis of Identity Unknown
The plot begins as Dr. Kay Scarpetta is summoned to an abandoned theme park to retrieve a body. She is devastated to learn that the victim is a dear friend; well-known astrophysicist, Sal Giordano.
The murder scene is very strange. The body appears to be atypically red and is found lying within a crop circle of petals. Examination of his fatal injuries indicate that he was dropped from a great height from an unidentified flying craft.
The subsequent autopsy and investigation reveals suspicions that include an otherworldly force or perhaps something Giordano himself was involved in.
Kay Scarpetta, along with her niece and her husband (both who work for the Secret Service) search out an explanation closer to home, which is possibly far more evil.
Summary
Outstanding storytelling, with characters who feel like family after twenty-eight books in the series, Identity Unknown is an excellent addition to the Kay Scarpetta Series. I highly recommend it to fans of the series and of author Patricia Cornwell.
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*Book Review of Identity Unknown written by Wednesday Elf
"Identity Unknown" sounds like another great mystery book by Patricia Cornwall. While I know I could not personally do the job, I am grateful that we have experts to perform autopsies to determine the cause of death. Thanks to books & movies, it is clear just how deceptive a staged crime scene can be and how erroneous initial "conclusions" really can be. I've come to appreciate the quote "It's to early to say"
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a fascinating crime novel, Elf! I know you’re a huge Cornwall fan and Scarpetta sounds like a terrific character. I may have to try reading the first novel in this series to see whether I can tolerate the level of violence and suspense. Thanks so much for the review and recommendation.
ReplyDeleteCornwell, not Cornwall (drat spellcheck!)
ReplyDeleteYou used to work for a Medical Examiner, that had to be quite interesting! This plot sounds intriguing with it's other wordly twist to it :)
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good read
ReplyDeleteI know I could get my mind right into this book. Married to a Pathology Lab Manager, we have seen and heard all kinds of weird things that happen in life and death especially. You have my attention and I look forward to getting into this book! I love good recommendations and this one is right up there. Thanks Pat!
ReplyDelete