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#medicalexaminer
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DogMomIrene
Red Mist: Scarpetta | Patricia Cornwell
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Need opinions on whether I should try Scarpetta books again or just enjoy the TV show when it premieres in 2025.

Last Scarpetta book I read is tagged. How many times can a serial killer go after this woman? I know series authors churn the same tropes, but Cornwell seemed to be really stuck. I‘ve searched for fan wikis about Cornwell/Kay to no avail. Book bloggers seem to have given up around the same time as me.

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DogMomIrene There‘s a big gap between Chaos & Autopsy. Does the series pick up again?🤞🏼 I‘ll read summaries for key details about the characters in books I can skip if the series gets better more recently. But does it get better? Tagging @CBee and @tpixie because I thought you ladies might want to see input from Littens. Because the blog posts I‘ve read, avoiding spoilers, don‘t give me any hope that this series picks up again😮‍💨 2w
tpixie Carrie‘s stint is finally over @DogMomIrene - I think! If I get a chance today, I‘ll look through the books and see if I can figure out when I thought it was more about the story than the total dysfunction of the characters. I think she had a break when she was trying other series that failed & went back to Scarpetta. 2w
tpixie ( thanks for the tag) 2w
See All 24 Comments
CBee @DogMomIrene I need to go and look through these as it‘s been YEARS since I read any. I remember trying to read the first in one of her new series and not liking it. I think that sort of turned me off to her at that point. I‘m going to see what they do with the TV series - I have high hopes! 2w
Ruthiella @5feet.of.fury Is reading the entire series and might be able to give input! 2w
tpixie @DogMomIrene I can‘t figure out when I thought it started picking up again. I just finished number 26. I suspect it was four or five books ago. There‘s a whole spoiler mess with a character and once that‘s all over, I think the stories got better again. If I recall, I feel like it was somewhere in the mid teens that it started going downhill and then somewhere in the 20s it‘s gotten better…. 2w
5feet.of.fury @Ruthiella thanks for thinking of me, I‘ve only made it up to Red Mist so I have no idea what happens! I thought autopsy may have been a “reboot” of the series. I was just glad with book 18 it went back to following Scarpetta only …a few before that were a mess.. 2w
marleed I‘m like you, I read maybe 3 books in this series years ago when my adult fiction reading time was very limited. I fell so far behind I never picked up on the series again. 2w
julesG You stuck it out far longer than me. I think I gave up around book 10. 2w
TrishB Think I gave up at 14…. 2w
DogMomIrene @tpixie Thank you! Given your perspective, I may just start again with 20. If it‘s terrible, I‘ll DNF and read a summary full of spoilers just so I get that bigger picture of the character‘s lives. Looking forward to them getting better again. 2w
DogMomIrene @CBee I‘ve got high hopes for the Tv show too. I‘ve never read any of her other books, but I loved her stuff in college. Her forensic details were so fresh back then for fiction. 2w
DogMomIrene @5feet.of.fury Yes! The books leading up to Red Mist just got so convoluted. And if I remember correctly, I think I started not liking the characters, which really bothered me since I‘d been reading about them for years. 2w
DogMomIrene @marleed @julesG @TrishB Good to know that I‘m not the only person who gave up. 😂😂😂 And I did stick it out for years. I may dive back in. I really loved the books at one point so maybe I‘ll love them again🤞🏼 2w
DogMomIrene @julesG thanks! I did find that wiki. If I decide to DNF some books, I‘ll use it to read summaries. I didn‘t dive deep into the individual books because I was trying to avoid spoilers. 2w
CBee @DogMomIrene I read them in high school 😂🫢 I was always fascinated with forensic anything. (edited) 2w
tpixie @DogMomIrene yes the messed up characters and their dysfunction got to me. Good luck! 2w
ShelleyBooksie I recently read Livid after taking a long break from the series and really enjoyed it. 2w
DogMomIrene @ShelleyBooksie Thanks! It sounds like her more recent books have gotten back to the goodness. I‘m going to give this series another go. 2w
DogMomIrene @tpixie Agree, only so many times can a killer target her or her niece, yada yada yada. Thank you! 2w
DogMomIrene @CBee I heard about them when I was in grad school at UT Knoxville and someone told me about the real Body Farm and the book. I got fascinated really quickly. 2w
tpixie @DogMomIrene that Body Farm connection would get you curious!! I‘ve always wondered about that since reading these books. 2w
DogMomIrene @tpixie I asked if they allowed students to go out there, and they didn‘t. Not surprising, but I definitely didn‘t mind asking. Who knows, maybe 🤷🏻‍♀️ 2w
39 likes24 comments
review
5feet.of.fury
Red Mist: Scarpetta | Patricia Cornwell
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Pickpick

The series seems to be back on track. Again we stick with Scarpetta instead of head hopping. Insecurities make sense, even if some previous plot lines seem washed away.

A cold case & a slew of suspicious death impacts 1 of their own. Wraps up a little quick, but the science makes sense & the connections were intriguing.

35 likes4 comments
review
ShananigansReads
Postmortem | Patricia Cornwell
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Mehso-so
Elizabeth2 I‘ve had similar issues when reading series that started years ago. The Aurora Teagarden mysteries come to mind. Some don‘t age well. 2mo
TheSpineView I agree with @Elizabeth2 some books just don't age well and with so many to read I can always find something better. 2mo
17 likes2 comments
blurb
TheSpineView
Red Mist: Scarpetta | Patricia Cornwell
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Catsandbooks 👏🏼❤️ 3mo
41 likes1 comment
review
swynn
Body of Evidence | Patricia Cornwell
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Mehso-so

(1991) Second in Cornwell's series featuring medical examiner Kay Scarpetta. The mystery is okay, but Kay's police partner is a homophobic bigot with a heart of gold, which I guess you could get away with in 1991 but is now just .... no. I understand the author herself came out in the 2000s, so I'm curious about her motivation for writing such a character as a hero, but not curious enough to read another.

MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm As someone with a brother that could be described as “a homophobic bigot with a heart of gold”, I can‘t say I understand her choosing that person as a hero, but I can understand how it could seem to her like she was writing a real person. I wonder if she was using the character to work through her own inner turmoil of how to view someone in her real life that held the same attitude? 7mo
swynn @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm Good question. Maybe ... or maybe she's using the detective as a voice for Scarpetta to react to, expressing a more inclusive point of view. Or maybe she has a redemption arc in mind for the character. I'd be interested to know how the character changes (or doesn't) as the series progresses -- and presumably its audience's expectations change. 7mo
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm That would definitely be an interesting character arc if that‘s what she does. I‘ve never read this series, so I have no idea whether it‘s worth it to read more. 😅 7mo
28 likes3 comments
review
Shemac77
Unnatural Exposure: Scarpetta | Patricia Cornwell
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Pickpick

Scarpetta almost seems likeable. Don‘t get me wrong, I love the character but she is trying.

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Shemac77
Unnatural Exposure: Scarpetta | Patricia Cornwell
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Also audible

20 likes1 stack add
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Marmie7
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Still no bingo🙁 Good reading month still. Maybe April, I'll finally get a bingo😏 ##bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Yay!! Fabulous month!!! 10mo
30 likes1 comment
review
5feet.of.fury
Predator | Patricia Cornwell
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Mehso-so

I was still excited to read this one, even tho the past couple were lackluster. after some meaningful Scarpetta/Marino interactions in the last book, their behavior distant &weird again. Lucy was a recovering alcoholic in the last 1, that storyline was abandoned &she had a random health scare that didn‘t get resolved & didn‘t make any sense out of her character arc. The crime itself was interesting but all the perspectives made the reveal slow AF

Helsky I remember loving the first books in the series. Then the writing style changed and I stopped reading them. 11mo
5feet.of.fury @Helsky agree. she changed the perspective starting at Blowfly & they have not been good since. The Last Precinct (right before it) was my favorite in the series. Before Blowfly I might have disagreed with some story choices or time jumps, but the books themselves were very cohesive… 11mo
Gissy And those hands? ✋ perfect👌 11mo
35 likes3 comments
review
Shemac77
Cause of Death: Scarpetta | Patricia Cornwell
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Pickpick

Scarpetta is just so annoying….but I have a soft spot for her