I don't know why I keep reading these books. I guess I just love the idea of Scarpetta- strong female character, forensic scientist. I also liked the way she developed the other characters, but in this book they are truly cardboard cutouts, especially Marino and Lucy. All of the loose ends seemed dropped and Lucy 's 'illness' just seemed like a cheap plot device to connect her to the doctor. I've read later books in the series and it seems she magically got better. Left this one scratching my head.

Not Cornwell's best by a long shot. Kind of sloppy, confusing, poorly developed characters. She can and has done much, much better. Maybe this whole Scarpetta series is getting a little stale. Truth be told, I listened to rather than actually read this one, so I may have been somewhat distracted. I've really enjoyed some of her other titles, though I'm not a huge fan I actually enjoyed the one about Jack the Ripper the best of any of her books that I've read.

Credit where credit is due: I hate books written in the present tense AND I went into this book expecting a forensic mystery.

That being said, the pacing was terrible, the book was so overstuffed that at one point, in the middle of discussing a crime scene we get step by step details of the main character cooking a risotto and the most minute of characters (characters who were mentioned on less than two pages) were given names and personalities. The ending was the most trite thing imaginable and several plot holes were left unfilled.

By far, the best thing about this book was the forensics -- full of luminol and superglue fuming; however, forensics took a far back seat to the life details of every minor character.

I was really wary going into this book as there are lots of 1 and 2 star reviews with many saying this is one of the weakest in the series. Initially I was worried as I found the beginning a little slow going and confusing and I even started googling the book series thinking I must have missed a book somewhere as I couldn't follow what was happening with Lucy (didn't miss a book - it was just vague and jumpy but is all explained later). However, once I got into it I found it to be a typical, formulaic Scarpetta read (which is a good thing) complete with the super-fast ending.

I didn't pick the plot twist (but I really should have). It was cliche and convoluted - yet I still really liked it and liked being surprised for a change. Was it one of the best Scarpettas? Definitely not. However, I was just happy to be back into the world of Kay, Benton, Marino and Lucy (although what happened to Marino......he doesn't match my mental image anymore). Looking forward to continuing on with the rest of the series.

Reading Challenge
Aussie Readers 2022 Annual Genre Challenge: Read a book from the Crime Genre.
Aussie Readers 2022 Annual A-Z Author Challenge: Read a book from an author with first name starting with P
Aussie Readers 2022 January "Michael Robotham" Challenge: Michael's chosen genre is crime/thriller. Read a book from either of those genres.

I read her earlier books and they were interesting and fluid. This one was a drag I literally had to force myself to finish it. I couldn't connect with the characters. ( When I read the earlier books I was introduced to the characters and then was able to connect with them) She should have done that this time as well. Overall the plot was automatic and just jumbled. This book was a bore and a waste if time.

-(#14 of the Kay Scarpetta Series)-I am scratching my head wondering why the reviews for this book in Amazon.com are terrible. I thought this was a pretty good book. The characters have new issues to deal with. Marino has become a biker. He works out, wears leather and drives a Harley. Lucy has a tumor on her pituitary gland. She is always on the brink of self destruction and it’s hard to figure out why. Kay and Benton are together but their relationship is strained because he knew about Lucy’s tumor before she did. There are several investigations going on at the same time. Come to find out at the end, they are all related. And there is one killer. A woman. She is a beautiful woman but was sexually and physically abused as a child. This causes her to become psychotic with a disorder called DID. This is similar to split personalities. Cornwell, is getting a little repetitive with her story lines. Again, a member of her staff, a undesirable, is linked to the murder. He is involved with one of the personalities and is feeding the killer info about Kay, Lucy and Marino. There is definitely surprise and suspense in this book. A new word I learned “red herring”. Definitely one in here. “Something that draws attention away from the central issue.” I enjoyed this book and I like the new path Cornwell has taken the characters on. I just hope she doesn’t run out of ideas.

The reason why people fell in love with the Scarpetta series was the science and the solving of shocking homicides through the use of analysis and technology. Same premise as CSI. The characters are terrible, CONSTANTLY being unfairly treated by every external figure (press, colleagues, government, etc.) that the interactions are frustrating and annoying. 300 pages and unbelievably fantastical situations for a series that is supposed to be grounded in fact. I was genuine annoyed when the wrap up was barely explained and completely confusing. This is officially my last Scarpetta novel. She's jumped the shark.

I think it might be 15-20 years since I last read a Scarpetta book and I can’t tell you why. I always liked them. Maybe it’s the unfinished, cliffhanger nature of them. This one left plenty to move on with in the next one it seems. I remember how Cornwell does it. Kay, Lucy, Benton and Marino are all good-great characters. This story was definitely twisted. Looks like I’m back on the Scarpetta train.

Un libro che soffre forse della stanchezza dell’attrice dovuto allo sforzo di una scrittura prolifica e forzata? O le versioni “miti” sono tagliate?
Piacevole la trovata delle personalità multiple anche se il finale è troppo raffazzonato è decisamente troppo veloce.
Sarebbe stato più interessante uno sviluppo maggiore del finale e delle implicazioni mentali dell’assassina. Un peccato.

Although well into the series of books featuring Dr Kay Scarpetta, this one is genuinely stand-alone, so if the reader has read none of the previous titles there will not be a problem. (This is not the case with all of them. For example, the Last Precinct takes up where a previous title finished and having read the previous book helps a lot).

Continuing the comparison with The Last Precinct, Predator moves much more rapidly and contains several narrative strands woven together with uncommon skill. It is not possible to go into detail without spoiling the book for a new reader, but the last quarter should be read with care. A number of strands come together here and much is explained, though often with such great economy that you might miss something – as I did – and have to re-read several chapters to track down what you missed.

Reading this book I am impressed, yet again, by how intelligent an author Patricia Cornwell is. The combining of plot, narrative and character with such a complex sequence of events required a great deal of skill.

One strand of the plot I liked a lot had to do with Detective Marino’s strong dislike of Joe Amos, a member of Scarpetta’s team, and how Marino managed to suss him out. Unfortunately, being more specific would ruin it for the reader.

Eigentlich sehr schade. Die Geschichte ist wirklich gut, aber auch echt grausam.
Leider kommt man kaum in die Geschichte rein, da nach jeden der ca 53 Kapitel ein anderer Storyabschnitt beginnt und somit kein wirklicher Lauf entsteht. Auch passiert das manchmal in einem Kapitel selber. Da kam ich komplett durcheinander.
Wäre das besser gelöst worden, hätte ich bestimmt 4

If half stars were allowed, I would give this a 2.5 rating. I do not like many of the characters anymore, and the action was wrapped up way to abruptly.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

I went into this book shortly after having read the 6th book in the WMC series, which renewed my faith in that series. I was hesitantly hopeful for this book to renew this series in my eyes as well. It did not. I do not like Scarpetta anymore - I do not understand what her deal is with Marino - apparently there was a fall out that I missed. I also don't like what is going on with Lucy. It seems the only character I somewhat like anymore is Benton, who randomly came back. So why do I continue to read these books you ask? Cause I have already put in the investment. I know, a lame excuse. I also keep hoping that they will get back to how they started. And honestly, by the end of the book I was starting to think ok - this feels a little more like the books when I liked the series - and then, once again, the action was abruptly wrapped up right when you expected it to get really good. le sigh. Here's to eternal optimism (or another -ism) that the next one will be better....