The breathtaking new Kay Scarpetta thriller from 120-million-copy bestseller Patricia Cornwell.
Two mauled bodies in the woods. Two top-secret autopsies. The most chilling case of Scarpetta’s career…
In this thrilling new instalment of the #1 bestselling series, chief medical examiner Dr Kay Scarpetta finds herself in a Northern Virginia wilderness examining the remains of two campers wanted by federal law enforcement.
The victims have been savaged beyond recognition, and other evidence is terrifying and baffling, including a larger-than-life footprint.
After one of the most frightening body retrievals of her career, Scarpetta must discover who would commit murders this brutal, and why.
Unnatural Death is book #27 in the Kay Scarpetta series – the thrilling forensic mysteries credited with kicking off the wave of forensic crime fiction and TV shows like CSI that we’ve been riding since the 90s. It’s no stretch to describe Patricia Cornwell as the original and the best – and it seems she’s only getting better!
Cornwell recently took a five-year break from the series, before returning to thrill fans with Livid. She’s now gifted us another instalment just a year later, so it looks like the queen of forensic crime is back on a roll. Rumours of a long-anticipated TV adaptation of the series starring Nicole Kidman have been gaining volume recently too – here’s to 2024 being Scarpetta’s year!
There’s a reason Cornwell has stuck around for so long, and been such an inspiration for so many. Her books are a masterclass in suspense, high stakes, gruesome intrigue, and satisfying resolutions. Unnatural Death launches us straight into the grips of a strange and chilling double-murder, the day after the deadliest Halloween Northern Virginia has seen. We’re quickly reacquainted with Scarpetta, and then we’re off to survey the crime scene. It’s a page-turner from the first to the last.
If you’re a returning fan, get ready for what could well be the best instalment yet. There’s a clear confidence in Cornwell’s voice – she knows she’s well and truly mastered her craft, with a willingness to lean into moments of humour and explore daring narrative threads. Scarpetta is her usual punchy, brilliant, yet somehow also relatable self; her whip-smart dialogue is on point in this instalment.
If you’ve somehow missed the train up to this point, now would be a great time to jump on board. While return readers are rewarded with familiar characters, you won’t feel lost diving in for the first time.
This is the ultimate, all-consuming book to escape into for the summer holidays. What is it that makes reading about brutal murders from the comfort of a beach towel so relaxing?
I have all her books. I can’t say I enjoyed the space novels. I happy Dr Kay Scarpetta has made a comeback and looks like staying