Identity Unknown
The gripping new Kay Scarpetta thriller for 2024
-
-
4.1 • 109 Ratings
-
-
- $15.99
Publisher Description
THE THRILLING NEW KAY SCARPETTA MYSTERY FROM THE WORLDWIDE BESTSELLER - SOON TO BE AN ORIGINAL SERIES ON PRIME VIDEO
'Iconic. Bold. Brilliant. Identity Unknown is hauntingly original, impossibly clever and devilishly daring. This series is one of the all-time greats' CHRIS WHITAKER, author of ALL THE COLOURS OF THE DARK
Summoned to an unnerving, abandoned theme park to retrieve a body, Dr Kay Scarpetta is devastated to learn that the victim is Sal Giordano, an acclaimed astrophysicist - and a man Scarpetta once loved.
The murder scene is bizarre, with a crop circle of petals around the body. Scarpetta's niece Lucy believes Giordano was dropped from an unidentified flying craft. Scarpetta knows autopsies can reveal the dead's secrets, but she is shocked to find her friend seems to have deliberately left her a clue.
As the investigators are torn between suspicions of otherworldly forces, and of Giordano himself, Scarpetta detects an explanation closer to home that, in her mind, is far more evil . . .
'Nerve-jangling . . . A thriller that's out of this world' THE TIMES
'Heart-stopping' SUNDAY POST
'Cornwell on vintage form' FINANCIAL TIMES
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Cornwell's diverting if overstuffed latest mystery for Kay Scarpetta (after Unnatural Death), Virginia's chief medical examiner investigates two bizarre, potentially linked crimes. First, Kay is called to examine the body of seven-year-old Luna Briley, daughter of billionaire Ryder and his wife, Piper, who claim Luna accidentally shot herself. After conducting an autopsy, however, Kay comes to believe the Brileys are guilty of child abuse—and likely murder. Meanwhile, Kay gets word that her former lover, Nobel-winning physicist Sal Giordano, has been killed and left on the grounds of Oz, an abandoned theme park founded by none other than Ryder Briley. When Kay and her friend, former detective Pete Marino, helicopter to Oz to recover Sal's remains, they find strange crop circles surrounding his corpse. Questions abound, including what Sal was working on at the time of his death, whether UFOs might be involved, and the uncomfortable possibility that his murder is linked to Luna Briley's untimely death. Cornwell gives each one their due, but an excess of subplots stifles the plot's momentum. This one's best-suited for devoted series fans.
Customer Reviews
Best in a while.
Best Scarpetta I’ve read for quite a while. Previous have been disappointing. I was concerned that Sal had his appendix removed on his left side abdomen though 😳, (unless I have interpreted incorrectly).
Identity unknown
So disappointing... boring...same characters, same plot, same bad guys. Lazy writing now from Patricia. I loved her early books, they were thrillers, deftly executed and well thought out... kept you guessing. No longer Thrillers but rehashing same storyline over and over again. I'll be back on board when Patricia lifts her game.