Blow Fly

Rating:
Summary: Not the usual Scarpetta novel
Review: This book is written in third person, which is different from her other books. This takes a little getting used to, but was an interesting change of pace. I enjoyed reading it, but it did not flow as well as her other books. The ending was way to rushed. I am left with a lot of questions that should have been answered at the end of the book. Let's move on from the Chandonnes already.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I kept waiting for the plot to thicken...and waiting...and waiting. It never happened. Ms. Cornwell sets up the plot, then doesn't tell the story. She hurriedly brings all the storylines together in the last few pages for an extremely clumsy finish. We aren't even given the courtesy of "seeing" what happens to the villains. I won't be spending money on another Patricia Cornwell novel until she decides that her readers are worth a bit more effort.

Rating:
Summary: Not what I expected......
Review: Being an avid fan of Patricia Cornwell, I was looking forward to curling up with this book for an exciting read. Unfortunately, so much of the book was reminding me of all the happenings in the books I've already read, that I was surprised to be almost to the end without ever having gotten to the juicy mystery I was expecting. I'm hoping the next book gets us back into the forensic science and mystery solving I've come to enjoy from the Kay Scarpetta novels.

Rating:
Summary: Blow Blow Blow
Review: Uffda, I've been an ardent follower of Ms. Patsy Cornwell, and I believe this book has fallen short of her standard. I began believing that this was a book about Kay Scarpetta, ace forensic pathologist, but it isn't. It is about a bunch of unfinished business. Unfortunately the loose ends aren't tied-up all that convincingly.
I guess I have learned to expect more from Ms. Cornwell. I still look forward to her next book, but please let's not have another stinker like Blow Fly?!

Rating:
Summary: Fly away!!
Review: This was a waste of money and a waste of precious trees!!! I awaited this book with great anticipation, only to be unbeliveably disappointed! The first 150 pp are a (poor) synopsis of Cornwell's previous 2 Scarpetta novels. The writing is in the 3rd person and we never hear Kay Scarpetta's voice (as in all previous books). The dialogue is so poor, it is hard to believe that Patricia Cornwell actually wrote it!! I was also offended by the trivial way Cornwell tried to bring in recent events such as 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq. I hate to say this, but this is the last Cornwell book I will spend my hard-earned money on.

Rating:
Summary: Bad, Bad Blow Fly
Review: I have read every Cornwell book written and was looking forward to reading Blow Fly. This book was a huge disappointment. Thankfully I got it from my library and didn't waste any money on it. It was written in the first person, which didn't work well. Each chapter was a different character - so it jumped around constantly. The plot was very weak. And the ending was so anti-climactic that she wrapped it up in the last 15 pages. It felt like she got sick of writing the book and just came up with whatever she could to end it. Maybe she was too busy researching Princess Diana's death for her TV appearance to spend much time on this book. It was definitely a half-hearted effort. If you're a staunch Cornwell fan, you'll read it - but don't waste your money on buying it - go to your library.

Rating:
Summary: not worth the hardcover price
Review: very long and tedious book,i was thrilled to hear Kay coming back but utterly dissapointed when i read it... the entire book seems to be leading to an incredible ending, then just stops... the ending is about 3 pages long.... very very dissapointing book... the more i think about it, the more i believe that i would probably not spend the money on a paperback either... perhaps if someone gave it to you for free, it would be worth the read..

Rating:
Summary: Man, What's That Smell? Blow Fly
Review: As the latest in the series featuring Medical Examiner Kay Scarpetta opens, Jean-Baptiste Chandonne who wreaked havoc in her life sits on death row in Texas. His brother known as Jay Talley is still pursuing his sadistic ways and for now remains free to torture and kill again and again wherever he is. For Scarpetta who is virtually oblivious to the world, all that really matters is that her love, FBI agent Benton Wesley is dead.

Scarpetta has never recovered from the twin psychological traumas of the brutal attack by Jean-Baptiste Chandonne and the death of Benton. It all was too much for her and she has started running. She fled her meticulous home in Richmond Virginia where she nearly died. She fled the firestorm and media circus surrounding her former job in Virginia and now lives in a small rent house that she does not care for in Florida and does some consulting work. But she can't run from the sorrow and grief she feels over the death of Benton that haunts her every waking moment and many of her dreams as well. She goes through the motions but she isn't living and it is destroying those that care about her such as Rose, Pete, and Lucy.

At the same time, a serial killer is working in Louisiana. A killer that may indirectly tie into a case from eight years ago as well as being currently active. At the request of the local coroner, Kay consults on the case from eight years ago as well as the current situation and unwittingly wanders into an elaborate puzzle of death where she is just a pawn in something much bigger and isn't in control.

Unfortunately for the reader, author Patricia Cornwell isn't really in control of her novel either. As a fan, I was hugely disappointed in this read. Not only has her style continued to change, which I could live with, but the incredibly melancholy and depressing tone of her last several books continues. Not a single character is emotionally balanced or even happy on any level. Furthermore, the read itself is highly disjointed with constant pov shifts, short chapters of little or no substance, and extraneous writing that does nothing to advance the book. The first two hundred plus pages of this 465-page novel are incredibly slow moving and Cornwell subjects the reader to extensive wallowing in the futility of each character's life. This maybe to set the mood for what comes later but if so, by this point, the reader is drowning in mood.

Then, there is the ending. Without blowing the book suffice it to say that the central issue, the point that the whole book revolves around, remains unsolved and left hanging wide open. Maybe this was done on purpose as Cornwell could be pursuing a story arc or trilogy of sorts within the confines of the existing series where she will resolve it in her next book. Or maybe it was just a sloppy and easy way out. I don't know, of course, which is the answer or if it is something in between. But after slogging through 465 pages I expect an actual ending that solves the central question the book is written around.

Rating:
Summary: This is a horrible book
Review: Could not even finish this book. Written in the 3rd person it is very hard to follow.I have waited for this book for several months.Patricia Cornwell is a much better writer than this book portrays. I wish I would have taken the time to read the online reviews before I spent my hard earned cash on this book.

Rating:
Summary: Where's the Kay I love?
Review: I was looking forward to meeting my old friend Kay Scarpetta again, but she was a shadow of herself in this latest book. All the characters lacked their unique personalities and depth, leaving the plot flat. All the members of the Scarpetta cast were depressed and lifeless and seemed to have little true interaction with each other.

The ending was particularily disappointing--a slapdash conclusion that really isn't....there's another book out there in development waiting to finish off the Chandonne's--I hope. I've gotten very tired of this plot line that has been running through several Scarpetta books. The Wolfman was never Cornwell's best villian, but he's been around the longest.