Rating: 
Summary: Scarpetta Fan
Review: As a huge Scarpetta fan I was thrilled when I got Blow Fly in the mail yesterday. I couldn't wait to read it... wanted to call in sick at work so i could finish it. I did enjoy the book just because 3 yrs without Kay was rough. I did not like the 3rd person angle though and wanted more of the conflict when Kay realized that those around her had lied to her. I guess I am back to wanting another Scarpetta novel. I would reccomend it to Scarpetta fans but would probably not reccomend it to someone who hadn't read any of the older Scarpetta novels.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed - 0 starts I was forced to add 1 * b/c of site.
Review: Coming off the ending of The Last Precinct three years ago, I could not wait for the Scarpetta series to start again. After reading the first 100 pages of Blow Fly I could not wait for it to end. I finished the novel in hopes that it would get better but it only got worse. The big problem with this book is that Scarpetta is in it about 40 of the 465 pages and as a reader, I felt jilted. The story seemed rushed, no focus, and unbelievable which is surprising for Cornwell. I hope she comes up with another Scarpetta novel quickly to fix the mistakes of this one. I would not even recommend taking the book out in the library in paperback.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the Dr. Kay Scarpetta That I Anticipated...
Review: I have read all of Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta Novels and even the Andy Brazil novels, which were barely mediocre, but I read them because they were Cornwell's. In Blow Fly, the 12th entry into the Kay Scarpetta Series, longtime fans of the Scarpetta Series will be disappointed, if not downright angry.
We ended the Last Precinct 3 years ago with Kay being attacked and resigning from her position as Chief Medical Examiner. This was okay, as Cornwell still stayed with the Scarpetta format, but sadly, it may have been time to retire the good doctor. Scarpetta has now lost her upscale Windsor Farms home, abandoned Richmond, moved into a crappy rental in Del Ray Beach, Florida. She apparently has little money, judging from the way she talks, and her career is pretty much sunk. Lucy is some cloak and dagger mercenary killer, Marino is just not Marino, and Benton has come back from the dead. I kept asking myself if this novel was actually by Cornwell.
The third person is distracting, and Scarpetta is seemingly not the main character. I haven't finished the book, and while I'll probably purchase the next Scarpetta novel--just for the purposes of having the entire Scarpetta collection, I won't have the high expectations I once did.
It's time for Scarpetta to retire. As soon as possible.
Rating:
Summary: A Bridge
Review: I love the character of Kay Scarpetta. I have missed her, and I am very happy to have her back. Unlike others, I am not upset by the turning event of this book, but very excited. I see it as a bridge. Black Notice and The Last Precinct were, to me, very unfeeling. The loss of Benton to readers was traumatic enough, but the books portrayed no life left in Kay. She seemed as though she was abandoned and couldn't find her way home. It almost makes sense that it is in the third person; as if Patricia Cornwell has had difficulty locating the voice of her character. Even she has been on the outside looking in, and this is her attempt to rescue Kay and bring her back to life. I am hoping future Scarpetta books will be true to the character that I considered a friend, and above all else, I am hoping Cornwell already has that book in process. If you're a true Scarpetta fan, you will enjoy the book in spite of it's flaws; and most certainly look forward to the next.
Rating: 
Summary: Thrilling till the end! - Another page-turner.
Review: I loved this book! In it, Kay finds herself in Florida, drawn into some gruesome murders -- but this is only a tease, as she soon becomes entangled in a greater mystery: one of international scope. Well, we can safely call this novel a successful page-turner! One book I certainly recommend. Other non-crime, more character-driven books I recommend: Bleachers by John Grisham, The Losers' Club by Richard Perez
Rating:
Summary: What's with Amazon's Ratings?
Review: I was just wondering how this book could possibly receive an "average customer rating" of five stars, "based on two customer reviews" when there were actually four reviews, and the average rating would be no more than two stars???? It appears that Amazon is falsifying the product rating for this book to boost sales for a packaged bestseller that obviously isn't up to the pre-publication hype. Makes me wonder about the honesty of their customer review system. I suppose it's anything for a buck, eh?
Rating:
Summary: Spoiled the fun
Review: I wanted to read this book, but the reviews here give so much away (Bentorn, etc..) that I have since lost interest. I will think twice before checking here again.
Rating:
Summary: What happened here?
Review: I have to agree with what everyone else has said. After waiting not so patiently for the latest Scarpetta book, the anticipation was high when I sat down to read it. What a disappointment!The third person narrative was awful, it felt like I was stuck behind a screen the whole time watching what was going on, rather than feeling like I was in there part of the action. Its usually so easy to get hooked into a Scarpetta novel, especially when you are reading it from Kay's point of view, shes such a well fleshed out character, but this time around I found it a chore to pick the book up & read it. Also have to agree with the reintroduction of Benton, my first thought was "I really should have reread The Last Precinct because I can't for the life of me remember Benton coming back". He was such a central character in Kay's life and I can't believe he was brought back like that (Also can't believe that he is in the book more in the first 100 or so pages than Kay, in fact I think every other character is!). The Last Precinct left it open for so much more, especially with Kay moving on in her career. Heres hoping the next one is back to the Scarpetta we know & love.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointed/bored are understatements
Review: I am in the process of deciding if I want to continue reading Blowfly. Being a loyal Scarpetta fan, I feel I should read it. But there is not any incentive to continue to read this book. I'm about 100 pages into it, and will put it down if it doesn't pick up. Unlike in the other books, I really could not care less about the people or happenings in this book. In fact, I don't think I'd be missing anything if I put the book down forever. So, don't waste your money on purchasing the book, if you really must read it, get it from the library.
Rating:
Summary: A disappointment...
Review: After waiting two years for this sequel to The Last Precinct, I am both frustrated and disappointed with this book. As others have mentioned, use of the third person was very distracting. One of my personal joys in reading the Scarpetta series is the way I have felt drawn into the mind of the good doctor. I feel what she feels, experiences what she experiences. This book left me feeling...well, nothing. Just flat. Cold. Lifeless. Like one of the corpses on the examining table. Also, as others have mentioned, bringing back Benton in such an abrupt way was frustrating. For three years (since Black Notice), we emoted with Kay, Lucy and Pete as they struggled to deal with this tragedy. Now, not only do we find out that Benton never died, but that two of the three main characters were part of the conspiracy to keep that information from the third? I feel as though I wasted my time grieving for this loss and its effect on the players in this story. Everyone remember that infamous "Dallas" shower scene? I felt the same way then as I do now. Heck, maybe it would have been more interesting if Kay had awakened back in her beautiful Richmond home and found Benton in the shower, ready to console her after such a horrible nightmare. If Cornwell had kept us inside the mind of the good doctor by telling this story in the first person, the reintroduction of Benton would certainly have been more effective. And who are these other characters who have been suddenly thrust into the story? We've never heard of Rudy...but he apparently has a long-standing history with Lucy? Where is Teun--wasn't The Last Precinct supposed to be her collaboration with Lucy?? And as for the ending...well, that was just ridiculous. All of a sudden we're presented with 90% of the story line wrapped up in a nice neat package, with the requisite 10% left over to hopefully draw us back into buying the next book. When Temple Gault was killed in the subway and Carrie was hauled off to the mental hospital/prison, THAT was an ending that built up my anticipation for the next installment. The ending of this book only made me glad that it was over so I could find something better to do with the rest of my day. Here's hoping the next book in this series will return to the Dr. Scarpetta we all knew and admired. If it doesn't, then I'll just reread the other Scarpetta stories and forget about any after The Last Precinct. I'm only keeping Blow Fly on my shelf because it is part of the series...not because I'll ever pick it up again.
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