This is the first book I ever read of Kay Scrpetta series by Patricia Cornwell, despite the negative reviews I read, I really enjoyed this crime mystery. I like the vivid way the author descripted the surroundings, and I learnt so much about how a medical examiner worked. I like Kay and Marino and Lucy, they are by far not perfect but I admire their devotion and determination to catch the evildoers. These characters are realistic and unique and interesting and intriguing, they lingered in my mind long after the book ended. Now I can't wait to read all of the Kay Scarpetta series.

When I finally finished this book I was so annoyed … … well, let’s just say in my defense, I was able to catch the book on its first bounce off the wall. Anyone who writes a book deserves at least one star. Cornwell knows a lot about fires and autopsies. Most of the book is about those. The protagonist, Kay, does a lot of autopsies and investigates a lot of fires, many by way of flashbacks. None of them even pretend to have anything to do with the storyline. Cornwell likes minutia. If she were writing about an interview with me, before the first question the reader would get the following: On left corner of Glen’s cheap, pressed-wood Stanton desk is a paperback copy of “Point of Origin” by Patricia Cornwell. It is sitting askew on an annual property tax bill from the County of San Bernardino. Next to that are several business cards from various officials of US Bank spread haphazardly. There is a wire handled magnifying glass. To the left of the glass are several credit card charge slips. Near the far corner on the left is a brass key from the Chi Epsilon Fraternity, an honor fraternity for Civil Engineers. Next to that is a six-inch diameter globe of the Earth. Next to that is a marble business card holder decorated with small brass elephant heads holding cards advertising Glen’s Neandertal trilogy. On the desk in front of the card holder are tickets to California Theater for the upcoming musical, “Evita.” Okay, I’m going to give you a break and not describe the right side of the desk. If you are reading a mystery and I’m a main character, several of those items could be important clues. However, if you have placed them in your memory to help you solve the case, you will be disappointed to find out that Glen is really not a part of the story, neither he, nor the junk on his desk, nor the information gleaned from the interview will appear in the book again. You have wasted your time and valuable memory space. Page after page we learn about fires and autopsies and every bit of minutia Kay comes across in her travels. We also learn about her niece, her lover, and a female murderer she sent to a mental institution where she is being held until her murder trial comes up.

It all starts with a letter from the woman in the mental institution that is highly coded and impossible to understand – this is actually a great start for a mystery – the best part of the book. Then there is a fire where a beautiful blonde is killed and burned to death along with a herd of expensive horses. Kay and her co-characters go through experiences that tell the reader about them. This is good background and character development, except after learning a few things about the characters, they continue to do stuff, but it all only confirms what we have already learned. Cornwell keeps giving us details about fires and autopsies, and minutia, but nothing new – the story doesn’t move. Cornwell decides to really impress us with her medical knowledge by blending in statements like, “… kidneys show hyperosmolar vacuolization of the proximal convoluted tubular lining cells. Meaning, instead of cuboidal pink, they're clear, bulging and enlarged.” Kay calls a father to inform him of the results of the autopsy on his son. “Your son's cause of death was acute pneumonia due to acute diabetic ketoacidosis due to acute onset of diabetes mellitus. I'm sorry for your pain, Mr. Quinn.” This poor guy is a member Christian Science Church – you can pretty well bet he is not going to be familiar with those kinds of medical terms. Then there are all kinds of suspicious, childish actions like someone ordering a pizza delivery to Kay’s house, but it turns out none of them are connected with the plot. Though an occasional clue to the crime is woven in, it’s obvious that the story is not moving, the characters are not developing, and nothing is going on but page count.

Speaking of page count – on page 281 the actual story begins – it will basically end on page 392 – only 110 pages left. However, Cornwell cannot stop stalling it with descriptions of minutia, so there are actually only about 60 to 70 pages of story. What we have is a short story that could possibly be stretched to a novella. Ultimately, the conclusion was totally unsatisfactory. I won’t be a spoiler and tell you what it is. On top of that there are many questions unanswered. For instance, one character has built up a collection of items over a period of decades beginning in Ireland and then all around the United States. Each of these items requires special care, especially when it is shipped someplace. There is no question the collector has spent an incredible amount of time and money amassing the collection, caring for it, and moving it around. At the end, he simply walks away from it, with no effort whatsoever to preserve it and there is no reason why he couldn’t, though he would have had to leave pictures of the individual items to be found as part of the plot. In Cornwell’s defense, she has fans.

3.5 stars

This is book 9 in the series and I did really enjoy this book. When a certain something happened I was absolutely gobsmacked to the point where I then ran to Google because I needed answers. I felt heartbroken when things happened in this book. I really hope That somebody who’s been in the books in the past is actually not coming back. I don’t want to give too much away, but it’s someone that everyone doesn’t like. I will be starting book 10 as soon as possible because I need to continue this series. This series is so addicting

3.5 - not my favorite for development of the characters but good overall

This plot has the Cornwell classic of leaving important storylines out of the books - suddenly Lucy is ATF with a line of explanation that of course explains nothing - could that had not been a good subplot? The Gault plot is in fact not over and Catherine comes back with a vengeance. This another a book where you begin to like Kay less and less - it's never clear her all the sudden ambivalence towards Benton - and Cornwell decides to kill off a perfectly good character - one of the only ones readers like! Why??? Also, there is major wierdness between Lucy's boss and Kay - that really doesn't make sense - all around this is a strange book with a plot that revolves around Catherine but at the same time does make much clear.

Dr Kay Scarpetta, Chief Medical Examiner and consulting forensic pathologist for the fedreral law enforcement agency ATF, is called out to an isolated farmhouse in Virginia which has been destroyed by fire. In the ruins of the house she finds a body which tells a story of violent and grisly murder. The fire has come at the same time as Carrie Grethen, a killer who nearly destroyed the lives of scarpetta and those closest to her, has escaped from a forensic psychiatric hospital. Her whereabouts are unknown, but Carrie has begun to communicate with Scarpetta......

Such a great series.

Het verhaal komt wat traag op gang, maar tegen het einde wordt het toch behoorlijk spannend.

This was so good, but so sad. Definitely one of my favorites in the series so far.

"La deprimente verdad, sin embargo, era que no había que ser detective, psicóloga o forense jefe para convertirse en posible objetivo de los delincuentes. La mayoría de las vícimas eran vulnerables. Iban en su coche, llevaban la compra a casa o cruzaban a pie un aparcamiento y, sencillamente, como reza el dicho, estaban en el lugar equivocado en el momento inoportuno".

Point of Origin takes Scarpetta down a different path.
Scarpetta in recent books has become down, depressed and quite unlikeable.
A series of bizarre events bring about some unexpected and tragic circumstances that bring out strength in our protagonist that we haven’t been used to of late.
Point of Origin is just what the series needs to engage the reader back toward Scarpetta’s intelligence and strong, unfaltering character.

Abbreviate to POO and it is all the clue you need. Egregious main character and author. Take text books and right rubbish.
My jerry springer author.

An appalling end to an appalling book.

If only I had a limp beer to hand.