Customer Reviews

Point Of Origin

5 star:		(127)
4 star:		(128)
3 star:		(100)
2 star:		(76)
1 star:		(85)

 

 

I've read all of Cornwell's books up to this one, and I found this sad, sad, sad -- as well as wonderfully done. As usual, Cornwell's characters are so real the reader feels like we know them personally. In Point of Origin, Cornwell gives the morbidly curious her usual dose of the gross but very real aspect of death. Most people don't think of the cutting open of bodies as part of murder investigations, but as a writer and reporter, I have come across medical investigators and crime myself. I have grown so fond of her character, Dr. Kay Scarpetta, that I can see her with my own eyes. (In fact, I picture her as looking exactly like Cornwell, from her descriptions of Scarpetta and Cornwell's own photographs and Cornwell's experience). Scarpetta and myself savored the last moments of a dying relationship through this book. Cornwell never gives you an ending you'd expect. In fact, this one shocked me, and I'm pretty unshockable. Putting emotion aside, it was the best possible ending she could have done. I think Scarpetta would agree, although in an ironic, unhappy sense. The book serves up horrendous death and a lesson readers can take with them in their own lives -- not to take anything for granted. Bravo, Cornwell!

There is a guideline among play/screenwriters that says if a gun is on the table in the first act, it must be fired by act three. So when the villain's threatening letter appears on the first page of the book, a reader can reasonably expect a person-to-person confrontation by the end of the book. Don't hold your breath, it never happens. The ending clearly points to a continuation of Carrie the Villain in another Kay Scarpetta book, but disappointed fans may not pick up the next installment.

Kay Scarpetta fans will have to be devoted and loyal to love this book. The quality if a far cry from the tensely plotted, intriguingly detailed books that Cornwell wrote at the beginning of the series. The result is a main character who has shed all her flaws, leaving an unsympathetic, driven, workaholic superhero in her place.

Kay's niece, in this plot installment, is fast following the character of her aunt. In other books this young woman was brittle, smart, sympathetic, and on the brink of self-understanding. Now she is just another lesbian computer genius, athlete, and expert helicopter pilot who comes complete with incredible intuition and brilliant firefighting skills and who regularly falls in love with her supervisors. Oh, and she was the villain's former lover, too. But it wasn't her fault. She was young. And dumb. Her character just doesn't add up.

Readers can't sympathize with someone they don't understand, let alone identify with. A good book editor would have made sure to create a character transition for those who have not read every Kay Scarpetta book in order.

And that's the major problem with the book--it's not badly written, it has a lot of potential to be another stay-up-all-night-and-read-Cornwell book, but it is badly damaged by sloppy work that could have been easily fixed by a shrewd book editor. An editor would have also made sure the escaped colt that received a big buildup was explained instead of forgotten; that Mr. Sparks either had a name change or at least a more finished role in the second half of the book; that people vital to the plot line would have been introduced before the plot line is exhausted; that the dialogue flows less awkwardly; that the non-word "ironical" never appeared at all; and that the ending explained better why no chemical ingniter was found in the tests when it suddenly becomes an important factor in the book.

Let's hope plot details get fixed by the next installment, or it won't be a mystery that Kay Scarpetta fans begin to vanish.

Once again, I disagree with a lot of the 'armchair' reviewers on their 'too harsh' of a review of a writer's book. I think it is in poor taste and tiring. Tonight, every book I click on has had more negetive reviews than good ones. What's up with that?

Again, I read a book for the fun and entertainment and of course the engaging plot (like in this wonderfully entertaining story) by Patricia Cornwell 'Point of Orgin.'

Point Of Orgin is a story that will have the reader swiftly turning the pages as quickly as possible with the story's many surprising twists ans turns.

The characters are engaging, and entertaining, and the plot suspensful, and surprising. I could also tell in the creating of Ms. Cornwells' story she had apparently spent many man hours in research to provide her loyal fans with both a knowledgable and professional account of forensic science.

One woman's opinion, buy the book and see for yourself, 'Point of Orgin' is a must read, you will not be disappointed!

I have always looked upon Patricia Cornwell's novels as a release. They are never intellectually demanding but, generally, are guaranteed to provide an interesting plot, good characterization etc.

While there was nothing wrong with "Point of Origin", there was nothing in it to rave about either. Once again, the protagonist, medical examiner Kay Scarpetta, is faced with a baffling series of murders but, once again (and I am giving absolutely nothing away by saying this) she faces the same nemesis that we have seen in previous novels. In reading the novel, I could not help that Cornwell has become too comfortable with Carrie Grethen to be willing to branch out and create a new villain who resorts to methods other than those made so familiar by Dr. Hannibal Lecter in "The Silence of the Lambs."

Where Cornwell succeeds, however, is in her mastery of medical detail. The success of the Scarpetta novels hinged greatly on the fact that the reader was actually able to picture themselves at the crime scene and in the morgue as a criminal investigation was conducted. The descriptions that Cornwell makes are admittedly gory but no more so than what medical examiners are, presumably, faced with every day. One is not left with the impression that the gore is gratuitous and that is why I have kept coming back to the Scarpetta novels.

"Point of Origin" is an improvement over some of Cornwell's other more recent Scarpetta novels. If only she were willing to experiment with new characters and plot lines, rather than stick to what is becoming the same formulaic plot, her readership would only continue to grow.

Wow! I read this in 4 days! This starts with a casual feeling of vacation and ends in tradegy for Dr Kay. The web she is weaved into while unraveling this story is amazing and she is Cornwell portrays her as a strong woman, ready to seek revenge.
Cornwell's description of the scene's made me feel as if I was watching them work the case.

It's only been 8 hours and I am starting the next novel!

In `Point of Origin' Patricia Cornwell is following the lead of James Patterson's protagonist Alex Cross. Once again we are confronted with the essence of evil in the guise of a manipulative serial killer that works her way from one book to the next. By comparing the Scarpetta series with the Cross you would be right to leap to the conclusion that I am laying a major insult on Cornwell. Patterson has proven himself to be the most craven and laziest author at work today, concerned only with making a quick buck on the hapless reader. But where Patterson has utterly destroyed the credibility of a once interesting character in Cross, Cornwell has fashioned a more thoughtful approach to the same problem. This book works well, but only just barely.

As much as I am enjoying reading the Scarpetta series, it is becoming frayed at the seams a bit. I am hoping that Cornwell will leave behind this character who has seemingly been explored to about her furthest point. Scarpetta cant battle a new serial killer every book and confront that person in such a personal one on one struggle every time with out getting a little tiring. After all, most of the growth Scarpetta attained was in the first few books of this series, and now it feels like she is becoming a stereotype of herself. I think that Cornwell is such a gifted author that she could, if she wished, write a novel on par with Jim Harrison's better books, or `Mystic River' or `Motherless Brooklyn.'

Like many popular novels, this one is an easy and fairly quick read despite the fact that Cornwell often gives way too much detail and information in places. Near the beginning of this work she introduces a manager at a local motel that has red hair and a cat named "Pickles". She tells us why the cat is named Pickles, and if I could ask her, I'd wonder why she bothered. Somebody apparently likes Vidalia onions too, so what? I think some of the attention to detail, like what's for dinner and what color a meaningless characters shirt is, could have been left out.

Cornwell does a good job of back story and I was surprised to find that a character from 'All That Remains', the only other novel of hers I've read, had died off in one of the previous books. By the end of this one, I decided that there was a plot line that Cornwell doesn't seem to escape from; Scarpetta is a bit of a loner and lots of her friends die including one in the the book I just mentioned. I suppose it propels readers into the next book, who will die next? But I find it too contrived. I never liked the premise of that tv show 'Murder She Wrote' either, how many people have someone around them get murdered all the time?

In 'All That Remains' we have too many coincidences. Perhaps that is often how crimes are solved, through lucky breaks and the like, but here it was too much. And I really didn't care for the ending, it was too sudden and didn't have much suspense. It seemed like she decided it was time to end the book, so the killers just showed up and started shooting.

Another complaint I have is simply that she leaves some issues unresolved. In the beginning of the novel, there is a black foal that has mysteriously escaped death and we are lead to believe this is some kind of foreshadowing, but it never gets resolved. Also the character that seems to be important at the beginning, the big-wig rich guy, ends up being almost meaningless, even though we are lead to believe he has some importance.

A huge issue in trying to solve the crime, how the fires started and how they get so big, gets tons of play, but we never get told what actually happened. This was the biggest error of the book, I felt, there was all this drama building up about how they couldn't figure out how the fires got started and then we are never told what actually happened. One of the problems of writing from only one viewpoint, in the first person, is that it is sometimes awkward to describe events that the protagonist doesn't know about first hand. I'd give Cornwell an "A" for how she handles this technique, but to leave out something so important seems unforgivable. She does explain how the fire starts, but it is akin to saying they "used a match" she left out how they got so hot when that question was a huge story point to the fire detectives.

And of course the characterization of Lucy was too much. If Cornwell wants to write about a computer genius, beautiful and perfect, able to do calculations in her head that everyone else needs a calculator for, able to fly helicopters, be a fire investigator, FBI agent, and so forth, perhaps she should make her the protagonist as she is almost like a female James Bond and she shouldn't be playing second fiddle.

Despite my complaints, being picky and looking for faults is a character trait of mine, I'm still going to give this book a 4. In the field that it is written in, it is above average. I'd recommend, however, starting in the beginning of the series, unlike myself, as I think that would make the stories run together more smoothly. I'd also point out that this type of writing probably appeals more to female readers, but I'd venture to say I'll read more, they are certainly entertaining.

I have to admit something about this book - it made me cry. Yes, at one point while reading, I had to wipe tears off of my face and rub my eyes so I could see the printed words. Ok, so I may be emotional, but Patricia Cornwell knows how to bring the sentiments of her readers to the surface. And just to clarify a major point (and save a little of my credibility) I've had others admit that they shed a few tears while reading this book too! So there, you can be assured that I'm not a crybaby (at least most of the time) it's just that this book really moves people.

Dr. Kay Scarpetta is again on the trail of Temple Gault and his one time accomplice Carrie Grethen. This is a personal thing with Scarpetta since the dastardly duo tried to set up her niece Lucy and used Lucy's passion as part of a psychotic game in THE BODY FARM. Scarpetta has a new role, one of consulting forensic pathologist for the federal government (just how many hats can that lady possibly wear?). She's called to investigate a horse ranch that had been burned to the ground, and a body found in the ruins. As Scarpetta is on the heels of this pyromania killer (Gault and Grethen or someone else?), her usual cast of support characters surrounds her. We again see Benton, Lucy, and Marino at their best (and worse) so that a vivid picture of who they are and what makes them tick is forever established in our imaginations.

The main thing that makes this book memorable is the emotions this story brings to the surface. We see each of the characters as we've never seen them before and it makes it much easier to relate to some that Cornwell has kept at arm's length from the reader.

True to her fans, Patricia Cornwell doesn't disappoint with this work. It's graphic, emotional and thrilling, as we've come to expect from this writer who is setting the standard for mysteries in the future. It's almost impossible to put this book down and turn the light off to go to bed!

As a Professor of English literature at Victoria University, I recommended my students read this book as an example of a standard potboiler bereft of real ideas and characterisation. The style is basic, the grammar poor and vocabulary range limited. The main variety comes in trying to spot all the references to brand names. The plot meanders along introducing pointless elements like Marino's christmas lights and the escaped foal which goes unexplained. The characters are surprisingly unappealing as Scarpetta rants most of the time and, as other readers have commented, Lucy is a bizarre character and I suspect the alter ego of the author. In spite of those comments, POO does succeed in being a page-turner, and that is all it needs to be, and it is a very easy read. But any enjoyment is entirely negated at the end when the denouement is tied up in about 15 lines and leaves it open for an obvious sequel. Given that very little of the point of origin was in fact explained, having the book tied in such a mediocre fashion was disappointing. Nevertheless, it keeps her fans and her bank manager happy.

Cornwell's early novels were very entertaining. They also showed a great deal of insight in how an ME operates (no pun intended). However, she seems to be in a rut. First of all, someone has to follow Kay Scarpatta around and keep her from dating. Her boyfriends all seem to die violently. Can't Cornwell write a break up scene or a decent Dear John letter? And what is her fascination with niece Lucy's past, present, and future lovelife? It isn't titalating or even interesting. (Of course neither were Cornwell's own alleged misadventures walking down that particular street.) Most of all, the ending is downright stupid. To invest five to six hours reading a book only to have everything resolved by a plot connivance (and not for the first time I might add) because an author can't come up with anything better, cheats the reader. Maybe we should all demand our money back. Maybe Cornwell should do us all a favor in her next book by letting the boyfriend live and having Scarpatta get killed off.