Can you imagine finding out too late that the wrong
person was killed
in the electric chair for a
crime. When a fingerprint from a convict
who was incarcerated for many years and had just been put to
death shows up at a crime scene, the question is risen if the right person
was put to death. Dr. Scarpetta is back in another thrilling
medical mystery which brings up the haunting question of who is who. Patricia
Cornwell has produced a series of books with the main character being
Dr. Kay Scarpetta, Medical
Examiner of Virginia. For those of you who
didn''t grow up watching the television show Quincy, ME a medical
examiner is the person who looks at the corpses brought in to determine
cause of death. And if there is any questions, it is up to them to find
the answers. Patricia Cornwell was the ME for Virginia in reality
before retiring. Now she writes books that are mostly fictional. Some
reality does creep in, which makes her books all the more interesting. In
Cruel Doubt they find finger prints from a recently executed prisoner
many questions are raised. Especially when everyone connected from the
murder the prisoner had committed years ago started to show up dead.
Follow the twists and turns of the story as it unfolds showing how
quickly lives can fall apart. Along with the fascinating
crimes, also continued is your look into Dr. Scarpetta''s life,
including Officer Marino and her niece, Lucy. Other characters are
introduced and more is found out about her past. This is one of
Cornwell''s earlier
novels. I started with many of her later novels, so
this book in a way filled in some missing parts of the good doctor''s
past. While it is not necessary to read her books in order, like a
series, you do get more out of it if you read the earlier novels and
get the background information. But I feel I''ve enjoyed them just as
much by working my way backwards. However, I would recommend
if you are going to read her books that you read "Cruel and Unusual"
before you read "From Potter''s Field" because they do have a bit of a
time line to them and facts from one lead to the other. All in all, two
thumbs up to Cornwell again.