Interminable. Horrendous. Boring. Annoying. This series is nothing like the old Scarpettas, where she would actually talk more about the crazed killer and spend time tracking him or her down. These new books are full of internal monologues where Kay wonders what Lucy is doing, what Benson is dealing with, why Marino is the way he is, and lots of dialog where everyone speaks disingenuously and never shares their deepest thoughts.

Lucy trusted someone and was let down again. Benson is having trouble with his job. Kay is conflicted and can't share her thoughts. Marino is a caricature of his former self. Bryce is an annoying chatterbox that I'm having trouble believing works for Scarpetta. She would never suffer a fool like that gladly.

I'm sure there was an actual plot, but it took forever to get to amongst all the bloviation. I can't even give this book a single star, because I felt like I got nothing out of it. The characters should be familiar but they are not...and the only bright thing is that I didn't spend a penny for this book. I borrowed it. Perhaps Cornwell should take some time off and try to focus herself better. I suggest she re read her first 4 novels and try to re create that magic, because it's not evident at all any more.