Postmortem

Patricia Cornwell

Sep 2008 · Hachette UK

About this ebook

The first book in the Kay Scarpetta series, from No. 1 bestselling author Patricia Cornwell. Scarpetta is coming to the screen soon, starring Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis.
'America's most chilling writer of crime fiction' The Times

A serial killer is on the loose in Richmond, Virginia. Three women have died, brutalised and strangled in their own bedroom. There is no pattern: the killer appears to strike at random - but always early on Saturday mornings.

So when Dr Kay Scarpetta, chief medical officer, is awakened at 2.33 am, she knows the news is bad: there is a fourth victim. And she fears now for those that will follow unless she can dig up new forensic evidence to aid the police.

But not everyone is pleased to see a woman in this powerful job. Someone may even want to ruin her career and reputation . . .

If you're a fan of Patricia Cornwell's ground-breaking Kay Scarpetta series, don't forget to order her brand-new Scarpetta thriller, Unnatural Death.

Praise for the groundbreaking series:
'One of the best crime writers writing today' Guardian

'Devilishly clever' Sunday Times

'The top gun in this field' Daily Telegraph

'Forget the pretenders. Cornwell reigns' Mirror

'The Agatha Christie of the DNA age' Express

Ratings and reviews

Once again Patricia Cornwall has given us a well-written novel that keeps the reader rivetted to the end. The only crticism I can make is that the technical detail was too much to take in. I think I'm in love with the Doc.

Loved it .read up to potters field and still love these books. Started again now I've got tablet to store them on

Great read, builds and builds on a gentle yet gripping simmer that makes you second guess yourself every page.

About the author

In 1990, Patricia Cornwell sold her first novel, Postmortem, while working at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Richmond, Virginia. An auspicious debut, it went on to win the Edgar, Creasey, Anthony, and Macavity Awards, as well as the French Prix du Roman d'Aventures - the first book ever to claim all these distinctions in a single year. Growing into an international phenomenon, the Scarpetta series won Cornwell the Sherlock Award for best detective created by an American author, the Gold Dagger Award, the RBA Thriller Award, and the Medal of Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters for her contributions to literary and artistic development. Today, Cornwell's novels and iconic characters are known around the world. Beyond the Scarpetta series, Cornwell has written the definitive nonfiction account of Jack the Ripper's identity, cookbooks, a children's book, a biography of Ruth Graham, and three other fictional series based on the characters Win Garano, Andy Brazil, and Captain Callie Chase. Cornwell continues exploring the latest space-age technologies and threats relevant to contemporary life. Her interests range from the morgue to artificial intelligence and include visits to Interpol, the Pentagon, the U.S. Secret Service and NASA. Cornwell was born in Miami. She grew up in Montreat, North Carolina, and now lives and works in Boston.