Blow Fly (Kay Scarpetta #12) by Patricia Cornwell





Easily the worst of the series

This was an utterly disappointing book. I have stepped away from Cornwell for a couple of years, but I was an avid reader before that, including the horrid series of books that Cornwell started with Hornet's Nest and Isle of Dogs.

Blow Fly is just as bad, if not worse, than those books. I had thought that it was the characters that I disliked in that other Cornwell series but now I am convinced that Cornwell has changed her writing style and I am not a fan of the new Cornwell style at all.

Recommendations:

*Spin Lucy off. She's becoming too Batman-esque, with all of her high-powered technological gadgets, a sidekick and a helicopter. I'm sick of her and I have not liked her since she joined the FBI.

*Do something with Marino other than having him drink, burp, and look unhealthy. He appears throughout the book but only does something useful at the beginning. He is a pathetic version of his rough-edged self in the earlier books.

*Benton. Hated him in every book. Still do.

*I know the French brothers are supposed to be Scarpetti's nemesis but, honestly, how many cops have a nemesis? Give it a rest.

*Do something with the plot other than drag the reader through page after page of Lucy's antics, Marino's unhealthiness, Scarpetti's desire to be a powerful woman (How many times is her 'power' referred to? I'd bet it's at least half a dozen.), Benton's dispassionate scheming and the insane thoughts of a deformed French madman who is constantly playing with his tiny genitalia. Lots of emoting, musing and rambling. Not much action.

*Note to Patricia Cornwell. I know it may have been a while since you had to shop at a Wal-Mart, but they would make an awful place to kidnap someone since the parking lots are constantly watched by cameras. How do I know this? Go to the customer service counter at any Wal-Mart in America and you'll see the monitors showing the display outside.

So, to sum up: This book is terrible. Read the early books in the series - they are great.

I give Blow Fly 1 star out of 5.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: Blow Fly by Patricia Cornwell.

Reviewed on April 19, 2006.

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