Trace-Dr. Kay Scarpetta, the Forensic Medical Examiner is called back to Richmond to assist in the investigation of a girl’s murder. She doesn’t want to go back to the city that fired her 5 years ago, but it is a child and how can she say no?
Returning to Richmond, she finds that there is a lot more going on than just finding the cause of death of a 14 year old girl. Politics, incompetence, and total chaos now rule the medical examiners office that took her years to lovingly build.
All the while, her significant other, Benton, and her niece, Lucy, are up to some investigation of their own, but keeping it from Scarpetta. It seems that someone is stalking Lucy and even brutally attacked her lover.
Like I said, I am a big fan of the Kay Scarpetta series of Patricia Cornwell. Trace just somehow misses the mark for me. There were some minor story lines that did nothing for the main plot and even muddied that water a few times. The ending was so anticlimactic that I felt cheated. Who wants to read 430 plus pages, only to have the climax wrapped up simple in two pages?
If you have never read Patricia Cornwell and love forensic type mysteries, she is great. Just don’t pick this one as your first. For more works by her, check out her site - http://www.patriciacornwell.com/
Trace
by Patricia Cornwell
448 pages
Publisher: Putnam Adult (September 7, 2004)
ISBN-10: 0399152199
ISBN-13: 978-0399152191
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Comments: 38
I used to really like this series, but ....
She has gone into too many weird tangents lately and the threads are harder to keep up with than a Robert Ludlum novel....and I can usually pretty well keep up with him!
Still I read them and enjoy them, just not as much as I used to.
Thanks for the review and saving the money and time on this one for me.
I have even read her non fiction work on Jack the Ripper and that was truly interesting.
Thanks to you both!
Dorine, I love her too, but even the best can't be perfect every day.
I have not read the last few. Looks like I will not read this one either.
glitter-graphics.com
I have read most of them Joy, but usually out of order.
I loved the Body Farm too! I think that Kay may have run her course and Cornwell is trying to bleed the story line dry. Sad, but that is the way that I see it.