Depraved Heart (Kay Scarpetta Mysteries) - Softcover

Cornwell, Patricia

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0062561324 ISBN 13: 9780062561329

Publisher: William Morrow & Company, 2017

Synopsis

Dr. Kay Scarpetta is working a suspicious death scene in Cambridge, Massachusetts, when she receives a text message with a video link that seems to be from her niece Lucy. But how can it be? It's clearly a surveillance film of Lucy taken years ago.

As Scarpetta watches she comes to grips with frightening secrets. That first clip and others sent soon after raise dangerous implications that isolate Scarpetta, leaving her confused and not knowing whom she can tell--not her FBI agent husband, Benton Wesley, or her investigative partner, Pete Marino. Not even Lucy.

Cornwell launches these characters on a psychological odyssey that includes the bizarre death of a Hollywood mogul's daughter, wreckage on the bottom of the sea in the Bermuda Triangle, a grisly gift left in a crime scene truck, and videos from the past that threaten to destroy Scarpetta's entire world. The diabolical presence and singularly "depraved heart" behind what unfolds seems obvious--but not to the FBI, who begin building a case against Lucy that could send her to prison for the rest of her life. . . .

About this title

Review:

"Scarpetta's current case, Lucy's troubles with the Feds, and Carrie's spooky blast from the past are all on an inevitable collision course, and Cornwell shows surprising restraint in reining in her plot and keeping it tightly focused on her well-developed core characters."--Publishers Weekly

"Dark and cleverly plotted."--Booklist

"Another gritty, world-weary tale of mayhem by masterful mysterian Cornwell. . . . Terse and tangled, messy and body-fluidy, and altogether satisfying."--Kirkus Reviews

"Dr. Kay Scarpetta, who keeps us coming back to Patricia Cornwell's sprawling crime novels, is one tough broad. . . . Once Scarpetta decides to ferret out Lucy's secrets, the novel becomes more of a psychological thriller..."--New York Times Book Review

"Heart-stopping, paranoia-fueled, propulsively readable, viscerally suspenseful, disconcertingly shifty... Cornwell's demonic plot shifts and changes almost page by page, so the reader's spun round not knowing what to believe... This intense rush of a mystery will keep you guessing up until the very scary conclusion."--Providence Journal

From the Back Cover:

Dr. Kay Scarpetta is working a highly suspicious death scene in Cambridge, Massachusetts, when an emergency alert sounds on her phone. A video link seems to be from her niece Lucy. But how can it be? It's clearly a surveillance film of Lucy taken almost twenty years ago.

As Scarpetta watches she comes to grips with frightening secrets about her niece. That first clip and others sent soon after raise dangerous implications that increasingly isolate Scarpetta and leave her confused, alarmed, and not knowing where to turn. The diabolical presence and singularly -depraved heart- behind what unfolds seems obvious--but strangely, not to the FBI. Certainly that's the message they send when they start harassing Lucy and begin building a case that could send her to prison for the rest of her life.

In the latest novel in her bestselling series featuring medical examiner Dr. Kay Scarpetta, Cornwell captivates readers again with the jolting twists, high-wire tension, and cutting-edge forensic detail for which she is renowned, proving yet again why she is the world's number one bestselling crime writer.

About this edition

• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 0062561324
• ISBN 13: 9780062561329
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 496