Autopsy: A Scarpetta Novel

Patricia Cornwell

Nov 2021 · Kay Scarpetta Book 25 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

New York Times Bestseller

In this relaunch of the electrifying, landmark #1 bestselling thriller series, chief medical examiner Dr. Kay Scarpetta hunts those responsible for two wildly divergent and chilling murders. 

Forensic pathologist Dr. Kay Scarpetta has come almost full circle, returning to Virginia, the state where she launched her storied career, as the chief medical examiner. Finding herself the new girl in town once again after being away for many years, she’s inherited both an overbearing secretary and a legacy of neglect and potential corruption.

She and her husband, Benton Wesley, now a forensic psychologist with the U.S. Secret Service, have relocated to Old Town Alexandria, where she’s headquartered five miles from the Pentagon in a post-pandemic world that’s been torn apart by civil and political unrest. After just weeks on the job, she’s called to a scene by railroad tracks—a woman’s body has been shockingly displayed, her throat cut down to the spine—and as Scarpetta begins to follow the trail, it leads unnervingly close to her own historic neighborhood.

 At the same time, a catastrophe occurs in a top secret laboratory in outer space, endangering at least two scientists aboard. Appointed to the highly classified Doomsday Commission that specializes in sensitive national security cases, Scarpetta is summoned to the White House and tasked with finding out exactly what happened. But even as she remotely works the first potential crime scene in space, an apparent serial killer strikes again very close to home.

This latest novel in the groundbreaking Kay Scarpetta series captivates readers with the shocking twists, high-wire tension, and forensic detail that Patricia Cornwell is famous for, proving once again why she’s the world’s #1 bestselling crime writer.

 

Ratings and reviews

Pleasantly surprised, thought I was reading a Cornwell novel from when I couldn't wait until the next Scarpetta book was released. Enjoyed the character development throughout but wished she would have expounded more on Lucy's situation as I hadn't read the past few books in the series. Overall, thought the ending was a bit abrupt, but was along the lines of what I thought a possible outcome. Was very happy to see that all the characters I've grown to love over the years will return for the next edition in the series which can't come soon enough for me!

Autopsy was the worst waste of money an time to date. she spent 2 chapters describing a bottle of wine. cant believe they published this BS.

I am an addict of the written word in particular Patricia Cornwell "s series and books most of them I've read more than once! I always recommend them as historical fiction as well as great psychological stories of a medical examiner's life!

About the author

Patricia Cornwell is recognized as one of the world’s top bestselling crime authors with novels translated into thirty-six languages in more than 120 countries. Her novels have won numerous prestigious awards including the Edgar, the Creasey, the Anthony, the Macavity, and the Prix du Roman d’Aventure. Beyond the Scarpetta series, Patricia has written a definitive book about Jack the Ripper, a biography, and three more fiction series among others. Cornwell, a licensed helicopter pilot and scuba diver, actively researches the forensic technologies that inform her work. She was born in Miami, grew up in Montreat, North Carolina, and now lives and works in Boston.