Patricia Cornwell's "Book of the Dead"

[MrsER]

I found this book extremely disturbing. Also found the plot tortuous.
Everyone in the list of characters has a ghastly problem either physical, mental or both. Even Scarpetta!
Read 232 pages of 387 and simply could not read any further.
Torture for the reader.
Any comments?

[Hellyon]

I agree with you, I don't even read Patricia Cornwell anymore, when she first started writing I enjoyed her books but they became more and more ridiculous and depressing. I think she is a very odd woman, with a rather strange personal life, she just writes about this world but is only a writer. I prefer Kathy Reichs and Linda Fairstein who both actually do the job they write about.

[MrsER]

Thank goodness I am not alone in thinking this.
I agree about Kathy Reichs and Linda Fairstein. Have you tried Tess Gerritsen?
She is a doctor and knows what she is talking about and does not try to confuse us with science. She is also a lovely lady.

[Goodsoulette]

I read patricia cornwell just because I started with the Scarpetta stuff and carried on. By the time BEntley was bought back to life, I just couldnt believe it anylonger. She started off strong and then just became a hollyoaks scriptwriter. Where as Kathy Reichs, gets stronger and stronger with each book.

[Goodsoulette]

and Temp isnt so up herself.

[shaneystar2]

I gave up on her a couple of books back .I think we have discussed this before in A&L. She gets more unbelievable by the minute .All the characters including Scarpetta seem to be completely disfunctional now .Once Benton Wesley reappeared from nowhere I started to liken them to something like Dallas where Bobby reappeared in the shower.
It seems to become more surreal by the page .
It's disappointing because her first books were great .
Kathy Reichs is brilliant and consistent and ...the spin off series Bones which is loosely based on her books has me hooked . I got the first two seasons worth for Christmas and birthday on DVD ....well worth watching .

[tickledtrout]

I used to like Patricia Cornwell, but now prefer Kathy Reichs, Faye Kellerman and Karin Slaughter. Have read some Tess Gerritsen but not all of them

[pingping]

I agree with all of you that Cornwell has gone seriously downhill. Reichs and Fairstein rule, although don't like Gerritsen much as I find her style of writing a bit obvious and simplistic although the stories themselves are not bad.

[BookEater]

Well, every one of us have their dark side... What I found more unnerving was Pete Marino not ageing: from the beginning he is described about 50 years old, and from "Postmortem" to "The Scarpetta Factor" about 15 years elapse! So was our dear rendeck cop a hearty 35-years-old at the beginning, or a wrinkled teetotal of 65 at the end?! Or is something wrong with my English?

[BookEater]

Well, most of us do have depression episodes. - What unnerved me more is Pete Marino not ageing. He is ever described as "about fifty". Was our dear redneck cop at the beginning a hearty 35-years-old, or a teetotal of 65 in the latest novels?!