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Summary: A departure for Patricia Cornwell
Review: The Hornet's Nest is the story of the police force of Charlotte, North Carolina, particularly its chief of police, Judy Hammer, and the deputy chief, Virginia West. This novel is very different than the Scarpetta series that Cornwell is noted for. The plot involves many of the same police procedures and the serial killer is not very different than those of the Scarpetta series, but the characters in this book are vastly different. I found this novel very exciting, but not completely fleshed out. The two main characters, Judy Hammer and Virginia West, are described so similarly, I found their only real difference was age. The third, pivotal character is the fledging news reporter, Andy Brazil, and he is almost contradictory. At one point in the mystery, I thought he had fallen in love with Judy Hammer, at another point, Virginia West.At another point, he seemed drawn to a homosexual friend. I also thought at other times that Virginia West was a lesbian, but she seemed to have misgivings about homo and heter sexuality. In brief, this is a strange, fascinating book. It leads one to believe that Patricia Cornwell is asking herself questions she cannot answer, and therefore her characters cannot answer the questions either. I hope that the author follows this novel with another, and that in the next book we see these confused characters more clear about themselves
Rating: 
Summary: extreme let down
Review: I read this book with an open mind, trying not to expect a rehash of the Scarpetta novels. I did, however, expect to find a measure of the skill and outstanding writing demonstrated in those books. I had to force myself to finish this book, and I wouldn't have bothered if the author had been anyone else. I got a little confused by all the strange and unconvincing story lines. The only mildly interesting part was when a character gets gangrene after shooting himself in the rear end. That's pretty pathetic
Rating: 
Summary: Almost as good as Kay Scarpetta
Review: It took about the first two chapters to really be able to keep the characters straight with just using their last names. After I got that all straightened out it was smooth sailing and I hated putting it down. It isn't Kay Scarpetta, but, we've had how many books to fall in love with her. Now we need more of both - Kay and Brazil/West/Hammer! I only hope Patricia can keep up the good work
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Summary: Did I miss something ... ???
Review: I'm a huge Scarpetta fan and thus a huge Cornwell fan. I bought this book blindly based on my faith that Cornwell can deliver the goods. I won't make this mistake again. After the first few chapters I was thinking "ok, ok, it's a new set of characters, I'll give her some time to develop them". By the middle of the book I was thinking "ok , we know who these people are, now give us some suspense, some intrigue, something to compel us to go on" At the end of the book I was thinking "did I miss something ... ???" This story is lame ... !!!. I felt like Cornwell was under contract with Putman to crank something out. This stinker is going to hurt her. It's junk. Who cares about Polly Mauney's boob job ... ??? Andy going on a "date" with Alex, because he's pissed at Virginia ... ??? Where did that come from ... !!! 50+ pages of Seth Bridges ... ??? BORING ... !!! Maybe Putman had a page quota, so Cornwell had to fill the void. It would have been better spent giving us some insight into the killer. I came away feeling the killer was really Denise Rodman taking his on court frustrations to the street after the game whenever the Bull's came to town. I can understand Cornwell wanting to give Dr. Kay a rest. After all, she just saved the world from a Nuclear terrorist. She deserves a vacation. But please don't try to entertain us with this cast of losers again. Sent Andy back to South America. Have Judy pawn her pearls and power suits and buy a farm in Vermont so she can enjoy her grandbabies. Virginia can take one last look a Bubba, on his way to the slammer, and get so repulsed at the sight of another men she becomes a born again lesbian and lusts after Polly, the rich widow with freshly implanted boobs as big as her own. If Dr. Kay is still on vacation the next time Putman collects on its contract, maybe we can have a spin-off with Lucy ... ??? Here's an idea ... Benton Wesly teams Lucy up with the FBI's dynamic duo, Mulder and Scully. Lucy uses her computer skills to crack the secret code of a microchip planted in the back of Scully's neck during an alien abduction. If the stress of decoding the microchips 256 Gigabyte randomized encryption key isn't enough for Lucy, in her spare time she can struggle with her lusty feelings for the ultra sexy redhead, Dana Scully. Mean while ... Fox Mulder rushes to Charlotte NC to contain the mysteries extraterrestrial virus that bores itself it the fat tissue of a persons left buttock and slowly eats away the flesh of its host. Anything would be better then Hornet's Nest ... !!! Really, Anything ... !!
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Summary: WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO KAY SCARPETTA?? BRING HER BACK, PLEASE!
Review: I was so disappointed in this book. I bought it thinking of the previous Kay Scarpetta books. Boy was I surprised
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Summary: What has happened to Patricia Cornwell?
Review: This book was horrible. I have enjoyed all of her previous books, but this one was boring and hard to read. I hope her next book is better, though I can't see how it could be any worse
Rating:
Summary: Not what I expected.
Review: Even though I was aware of the reviews of Hornet's Nest--most of the reviews characterized this novel as "dull" or "boring"--I bought it. Why, you ask? Because it was written by PC. The next time I'll listen to the reviewers. I, like many other of her fans, have been spoiled by the Scarpetta series of books; each book being the epitome of what I would call a "page-turner." However, Hornet's Nest has merit...not as a page turner, but as a satsifactory attempt at character development--albeit somewhat stereotypical characters. As a former police officer and newspaper editor, I found that the situations which Hammer, West, and Brazil encountered were very realistic and believeable. The supporting cast of officers, coroners, and politicians were believable in their actions and attitudes. Thoroughout the whole novel I kept getting the idea Cornwell had developed these characters in other situations such as creative writing classes, workshops, etc., and then pulled them together around the storyline of the serial killer that she had developed elsewhere as well. Would I recommend this book to another? Not to a diehard Scarpetta lover, without warning them first. Nor would I recommend this book to someone looking for a "quick read"--it reads slowly and at times arduosly. Nevertheless, this book does allow us to see that Cornwell is indeed a well-rounded craftsperson. Writers-to-be would be well served to use this book to see a good author paints a scene with words and the senses, and develops characters in relation to the other characters in a story, in the midst of each character's intrapsychic struggles.
Rating:
Summary: Dissapointed
Review: I originally bought Southern Cross and dropped after page 10, then decided to give the first book of this series a chance since I love the Kay Scarpetta Series how different could this one be, but a fan can do so much. I am an avid reader and I can still count with one hand the books I've dropped in my life.
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Summary: Oh dear - what's gone wrong here, then?
Review: This is the worst work of fiction I have ever read. I was recommended the author's novels by an American friend involved in law enforcement. Since I was travelling through Charlotte, I picked up this one as my sole reading for the plane journey home. After all, how bad could it be? Being stuck with only this novel and an inflight magazine for twelve hours was not something I would wish on my own worst enemy. You can read other reviews here which condemn the flat characters, the wandering 'plot', the nonexistent ending, the inner life of the wretched cat - I want to mention the writing. There are sentences and entire paragraphs here which defy any attempts to make them yield up their meaning. Have you ever tried to start a lawnmower on a cold morning when the gas tank is nearly empty? The experience is equally as unrewarding. Eventually, I gave up, and skipped over these - surely fans of this series must do the same. Even the writing which DOES make sense is annoying. My favourite howler comes on page 263: 'It was unthinkable to have a gun shoved against your head, your brains blown out'. It's obvious what has gone wrong here - the author has grown tired of her star character and her genre, and wants to experiment. That is laudable, but cookbooks aren't going to do it, and neither is this guff. As another reviewer mentions, success spoils some writers. Once they listened intently to a good editor, but that was before they sold their first few million units. Funnily enough, this experience actually sent me to Patricia Cornwell's earler novels, as I could not believe this standard of writing could reap such success. Sure enough, I found carefully drawn characters, taut suspense, and fascinating detail of police procedure. Time, I think, for the author to abandon this particular series and get back to the basics.
Rating: 
Summary: More about characters than story
Review: If you're a fan of the Kay Scarpetta series, it's hard not to be disappointed going to Hornet's Nest. The writing in the beginning of the book hit me strange, almost non-cornwell. There is very strong character development here, and while the overall story is just okay, there are parts that do shine. Enjoyable but I'd probably steer a friend toward other Cornwell books.
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