Rating: 
Summary: Not one of her better efforts
Review: The structure of this book switched from exagerrated satire to ordinary fiction back and forth in such a way that it made the believability of the world in which the characters operated difficult to believe. It didn't seem to conform to it's own rules.I really like Cornwall and was heartily dissapointed by this book. It's trying to be cozy mystery, a comedic satire, and a romance and all fail to gel. I have to say I'm very surprised, because Cornwall is a skilled writer. I want to support her trying other forms other than the forensic mystery, in which she has succeded in turning out excellent crime novels, often intensly gripping in their use of suspense. However this book is very rough around the edges and probably shouldn't have been published. It's like she admires Elmore Leonard and wants to write one like him, she fails to create a book that keeps a consistent tone. Some things are very realistic and some are so off the wall you don't know how to take any of it. Maybe if she worked on it longer on scrapped it and tryed again she would've succeded, but this one isn't worth reading
Rating: 
Summary: Disjointed and Decidedly "UnCornwellian"
Review: I have read the Kay Scarpetta novels and loved them. This book is clearly not up to Cornwell's usual standards. For most of the book I kept wondering how in the world she was going to bring together the disjointed story lines involving the various characters. In the end, the wait wasn't worth it. The line involving the computer virus was totally contrived and nonsensical, and only served to add to the general sense of chaos of the book. I was left with a feeling of having gone on a long and winding journey, only to arrive at a place I didn't want to be.
Rating:
Summary: Lacking Substance
Review: This book is packed with details and tangents that are never really related. I kept reading thinking it was going to connect, get better, a bombshell would drop. Never happened. It's as though Cornwell took all her ideas that weren't good enough to make it in her other books and threw them into this one.
Rating:
Summary: Missing continuity
Review: I read the entire book although I couldn't see what all these side stories had to do with one another....after finishing it, I still couldn't see a good connection. I was extremely disappointed in this book.
Rating: 
Summary: A book for those who can appreciate cubist/modern art
Review: Okay, people...it's a SATIRE! Have you never heard heard of Vonnegut? Jonathan Swift? The friggin' NATIONAL LAMPOON? Satire--in case you've not heard--has long been a powerful tool used by artists in order to highlight not only social problems, but human foibles, as well. In this case, Ms. Cornwell has mixed satire with a bit of Sartre-esque absurdity. (I mean, really, how much DOES a pack of cigarettes cost?) And as for those who are disappointed in this particular book and who long for Ms. Cornwell's Scarpetta series...well, don't talk to me about "stock" characters. Ms. Scarpetta, with her impeccable taste and vague liberal sensibilities? Marino, the hard-boiled, red-meat-eating, cigarette-smoking, wisecracking cop? Lucy, the gorgeous, whizkid neice, who provides us with the requisite lesbian titillation to which we've all become accustomed lately? I don't think so... I'll take the offbeat--and infinitely more entertaining--characters from SOUTHERN CROSS anyday. Believe it or not, some people LIKE to have to think about what they're reading. Makes it more interesting. You should try it some time. Ever read Faulkner? Some folks calls him a good writer, too. Mmmm-Hmmm. (Grunt.) SOUTHERN CROSS is kind of like a joke, kids. Either you get it or you don't. I got it. And yes, I think that BLUE VELVET, PULP FICTION, and RUN LOLA RUN are great films. So there.
Rating:
Summary: No desire to finish this book...
Review: I have never stopped reading a book in the middle before and I was so hesitant to do so in this case. However, I am finding it arduous to even read one more page. This is my second attempt at this book, getting much further this time. Unfortunately, Ms. Cornwell can't keep me interested with her characterization or her non-existent plotline.
Rating:
Summary: Not what I expected from Patricia Cornwell
Review: This book has been very disappointing and I am still struggling to finish it. I have really enjoyed the Kay Scarpetta books, and when I purchased this one I didn't realize that it wasn't a Scarpetta book. There are too many different stories taking place and the characters are not developed enough for the reader to get to know them. The story seems to jump around a lot, and it isn't really that interesting. I would reccommend sticking to the Scarpetta books!
Rating:
Summary: One of the worst I've ever read
Review: This is one of the worst books I've ever read. If I didn't already read 5 of her books, I would never pick up another if this is all I read. The characters are pathetic. The story is unbelievable and doesn't pull together. She includes the thoughts of pets and has them doing things like dialing the phone number of the ex-boyfriend its owner is pining for. Give me a break! Try another one of her titles but steer clear of this one.
Rating:
Summary: Complete waste of time
Review: I borrowed the audio book from a friend.If it had been mine, I'd of thrown it out the window of my car upon completion. Stupid plot, horrible ending.
Rating:
Summary: Not up to her usual standards
Review: Patricia Cornwell is not up to her usual standards in Southern Cross. Her characters are shallow, so the reader doesn't get to know them. Unfortunately the reader also has no desire to know the characters or even like them. The plot and story line are too contrived and don't pull you in. I trudged through this book believing it would get better. The end has no suspense, it's something that a high school Freshman would contrive for a short story assignment. (I know I teach high school.) As for the pet angle, leave it to Lillian Jackson Braun who does a much better job. You'll be better off to stick to reading books in the Kay Scarpetta series. They are witty, with interesting characters you like knowing, and the suspense will keep you up reading all night.
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