Book Nerds Across America

Mary's Review

I am a huge fan of of mysteries and thrillers.  I think that I love the "puzzle" of figuring out who did it, why they did it, and how they "almost" got away with it.  It is always interesting and enjoyable.

I heard about this series through Twitter and other friends.  They all say the same thing "great series" and etc etc.  So, of course I had to read it.

In my opinion, this series was not what I thought it was.  To me it did not hold me like a thriller/mystery should.  Dr. Kay Scarpetta was a good character but she just could not hold my attention.  Detective Marino is the lead of the case but he and Kay do not see eye to eye.  They are investigating, Mr. Nobody, a serial killer of several woman in the Richmond area.

The storyline was very predictable and I had figured out the killer almost half way through the book.  I like a storyline that would at least keep me guessing for a little bit longer than just that.  I thought Cornwell did a great job of descriptive writing and I did realize that this was an older series and there were not many new "advances".

Overall, I will not continue this series.

Jacque's Review:

I started out reading a couple of the Kay Scarpetta books that were further along in the series and really enjoyed them.  After determining that the main characters develop throughout the series, I decided to start reading from the beginning.

Kay Scarpetta is the newly appointed Chief Medical Examiner in Richmond, Virginia.  Throughout this book, we learn some of her personal history as well as that of her family.  We can see how things operate politically within her office and the various departments she interacts with.  As the medical examiner, she is involved in the crime scene investigations, autopsies, and assists the detectives in analyzing the evidence associated with a series of murders committed in Richmond.  Not only is she working to help solve these serial murders, but she has to contend with someone from the inside that is sabotaging the investigation.

Unlike Mary, I was not able to determine who the killer was until shortly before he was apprehended.  We eventually can determine the suspect's occupation and how the seemingly unrelated victims are connected, but we were not officially introduced to him until the very end of the book.  While the graphic details of the murders may not appeal to everyone, I plan on continuing to work my way through the rest of the series.