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Summary: Audio Book Review
Review: Disappointing. This was the first of the series that I read. I couldn't figure out the background so I never got into the story. The end wrapped up too quickly and then just dropped off.
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Summary: Not At All Like Patricia Cornwell
Review: I was very disappointed with this particular book. I was hanging in there until about the last 25 pages or so. We got to France and the book just fell apart. It wasn't that great to start with, but some hairy guy. Please. The romance was wrong, the Lucy character is disgusting and just rude. I love Patricia Cornwell, but at the French trip I was ready to throw the book in the trash. I suffered through, but I hope this is her worst, and I will look for suggestions from you other readers for my next. I have not lost faith in this author. Even her wrost has a way of always holding my interest. To me this is a great writer, who just decided to write crime novels. She has great potential.
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Summary: Another great Scarpetta story
Review: Really enjoyed this one - great - just like the previous 10 Scarpetta stories!
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Summary: Disappointment or Good?
Review: In the tenth installment of the Kay Scarpetta series, the book was a disappointment to more of the action readers. As Kay took on a fragile emotion DEA officer. As the book becomes slow in the beginning and then it gradually gains into a thriller to a horror. So in the beginning if you can get through the slow reading into the middle were the plot unravels into a awesome book, then I recommend this book to you.
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Summary: Disappointment or Good?
Review: In the tenth installment of the Kay Scarpetta series, the book was a disappointment to more of the action readers. As kay took on more of a fragile emotion DEA officer. As the book becomes slow in the begining and then gradualy gains into a thriller to a horror. So in the begining if you can get through the slow reading into the middle were the plot unravels into a awsome book, then I recommend this book to you.
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Summary: Not her best Scarpetta effort
Review: Loyal Patricia Cornwell readers will perhaps be somewhat disappointed in Black Notice, the 10th release in the Kay Scarpetta series, but will nevertheless purchase a copy and savor each page as if reading the last words of a great world leader. In other words, Cornwell is such a superior writer it is doubtful she could produce a bad read and, indeed, she hasn't yet.Scarpetta is a bit more fragile here than we've seen her in the past, dealing with the death of her lover, Benton Wesley, a year after the fact. It seems she has lost touch with what is going on around her, and must now begin to regain control of her surroundings and her life. Faced with problems within her office, political powers that seek to end her career, and, of course, a killer on the loose, she is forced to come to terms with the past and move forward. This includes reliving much of her relationship with Benton, accepting that he is not still alive and living out some elaborate plan concocted by the FBI for whatever reason, and finding passion in the arms of a living male counterpart abroad. Enter disappointment. The patience of Cornwell's lesbian followers are wearing thin with Benton Wesley. While Cornwell obviously agrees it is time to either put him to rest or bring him back to life, this should have been done some time ago, freeing Black Notice to be the book it could have been. In recovery, Scarpetta engages in sexual activity with a virtual stranger, which seems forced and out of character for our favorite heroine. Maybe we're just jealous, but Talley's introduction seems sudden and intrusive. Lucy, Scarpetta's openly lesbian niece, plays only a small role in the novel, which adds to further disappointment. Surely lesbian readers would have to admit they secretly hope Lucy will be the main focus, or at least a larger one, in upcoming Scarpetta tales. In this book Lucy is still dealing with the monsters that drive her to emotionally dangerous places, while readers wait to see the monsters for what they are, and how she might prevail and overcome her self destructive tendencies. Maybe in the next book. Marino is strong in this installment, as Cornwell brings his unique personality to the forefront and lets the friendship he shares with Scarpetta express itself with humor and an obvious deep caring for one another. Readers have watched Marino's life change over the years, and now he must deal with aging and his shifting importance in the world of law enforcement. The plot of Black Notice lacks the believability of earlier Cornwell novels. Gone are the strong, realistic killers of the early days, having been replaced with dramatic, almost super human qualities. Cornwell seems to be steering clear of the more forensically technical aspects of Scarpetta's work, and does not share as many interesting, if somewhat gory, details that once provided readers with clues and insight into the mind of the killer. The characters' lives and personal quandaries surpass anything the killer may or may not do in this book. With a writing style that is clearly Cornwell, and a cast of characters we have known too long to turn our backs on, Black Notice is a continuation of the Scarpetta saga, and one that is well worth suffering a few disappointments. After all, Cornwell would be hard-pressed to outdo herself, with Potter's Field and Point of Origin tough acts to follow. While perhaps not her best, Black Notice is still worth curling up with on a dark, rainy night. Sherry Stinson...
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Summary: Kay at her worst?
Review: This one definitely wets your appetite for "the Last Precinct." It was hard to put it down. Dr. Kay will always be my favorite Cornwell character and when Kay is at her worst, Cornwell's writing seems to be at it's introspective best.
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Summary: Black is the operative word.
Review: I found myself struggling to finish this book. Normally I can't put a Cornwell book down. I read from cover to cover almost in one sitting. BLACK NOTICE, and it's predecessor, POINT OF ORIGIN were books that got shuffled to the back of the bookshelf for when I didn't have anything else to read. It appears that Cornwell is moving away from the stand-alone novel and moving into the area of novel-in-serial, where in order to understand one you must read the earlier works. Some of the twists and turns will be explained in the later book, LAST PRECINCT, if you can hang on for that long of a journey. Scarpetta still solves her crimes but she appears to be doing it while whining and complaining. I'll read her next books because I want to see where she takes this character, but I won't buy them.
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Summary: Not Quite What the Doctor Ordered
Review: I have loved and identified with Kay Scarpetta since her debut in Postmortem. This latest installment in this character's life does not really do her justice. The book finds Scarpetta coping with the death of her lover as only she can: by throwing herself into her work. However, her act of grieving is so predictable, it takes away from the story. Her sojourn to England to help with similar murders is just odd, as are the requests made of her. While I am familiar with her ability to solve murders by going above and beyond the call of duty, I had some problems with her thought processes. I really struggled with how she got from point A to point B and drew a logical conclusion (i.e. diatoms in the water, murder weapon). The long-suffering Marino and his unrequited love/lust provided more of the expected. Even the introduction of Diane Bray served more as an annoying distraction than the presence of a true Scarpetta adversary. The only truly interesting event in the book is the climactic self-destruction of Scarpetta's niece Lucy. Lucy has been the most complex character and I enjoy seeing facets of her revealed in each Kay Scarpetta tale. Fans would enjoy this book, but Patricia Cornwell fell a bit short in this one.
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Summary: MY FIRST PATRICIA CORNWELL NOVEL
Review: This was my first Patricia Cornwell novel and I fell in love with it. I read the next one, The Last Precinct, and loved it, too. I ordered the next one, Isle of Dogs, before I realized it wouldn't be a continuation and after reading some of the comments about it, I almost don't want to read it. Actually I have the audiotapes. I bought Southern Cross (which I am listening to now and really don't like it) and Hornets Nest (which I tried to listen to first but couldn't get interested in it--don't even like the guy's voice reading it). Patricia, stick with Kay Scarpetta!
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