Customer Reviews

Scarpetta's Winter Table

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

Fans of Patricia Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta series are in for a treat with Scarpetta's Winter Table - a novella and cookbook that picks up where the last Scarpetta book, Point of Origin, left off.

Cornwell brings Kay, Lucy, and Marino together at Kay's house on the day after Christmas. It's interesting to see how each of these characters struggles with the ups and downs of the holidays. Readers get a rather rare glimpse of Kay's softer side in a domestic (and very charming) holiday setting. And aside from this book's unique look at some of the Kay Scarpetta series characters, it's also a wonderful cookbook with great recipes, many of which will delight year-round. After all, Pete Marino's last-minute chili isn't just for Christmas!

The suggested retail price seems a little steep for a novella, but this just might be the perfect gift for Scarpetta fans. So fix yourself one of Lucy's Bloody Mary's, and give Scarpetta's Winter Table - and the chicken soup recipe in particular - a chance this holiday season. With this heartwarming and delicious combination, you won't be disappointed.

I can't believe all of the other comments. I absoutely love Kay Scarpetta and the others. I've read all her books. I found Winter Table in the library and was thrilled to see it. I went home, read it in an hour and thoroughly enjoyed it. It was fresh and fun. I called a fellow Cornwell fan and recommended it highly to her. Can't you others take a moment and just relax? Kay's stories are great...but they do get a little grizzly once in a while. This sweet book showed Marino to be human; Lucy's "friends" as you're all so concerned about are co-workers who risk their lives every day and had some time off and were "chilling" together. Not necessarily life long friends...just people who are in the same line of work who needed someone to spend the holidays with. If they have the same lifestyle as Lucy, they may have "lost" their families and need someone they can be real with. Lighten up everyone. It was a great book!!!

I read Scarpetta's Winter Table in about one hour --immediately went shopping and last night had the marvelous Holiday pizza for dinner and today made Lucy's Felonious cookies--yum--both were a great hit and believe me you don't need to have exact amounts to make them. This book was great and I can see each one of the character's as they indulged in their cooking--My favoite part of the novelette, though, was Marino and the little boy--Jimmy--Thanks--Patricia for another great book---By the way as my pizza crust rose I started Black Notice.

No matter what others have written before me, i enjoyed this book. Granted, it moved away from the blood and gore of previous Scarpetta books and was in turn a light hearted and uncomplicated story but nevertheless, was a great read. Yes, like others have mentioned, the words and actions of the characters at times appeared to be out of tune with the way they had been established in earlier works. To me however, it seems Ms Cornwell attempted to give us a new, relaxed insight into her and our beloved Kay, Marino and Lucy. So yes, there are some things in this book that to me do not ring quite true but overall i think this to be great read, and one i would gladly read again on any day i needed cheering up. As to whether this book was written by Cornwell, i think it was...but she just adopted a different stance than we are used to in the other books....a job well done i think.

As a Patricia Cornwell fan, I was dubious about buying a spin-off book and possibly destroying my image of Dr. Scarpetta. However, my curiosity (and stomach) finally overcame my reservations. This book is absolutely wonderful! Dishes are written in a narrative form and are simple to figure out, leaving just enough room for imagination and a personal touch, as recipes ought to be. The story is more in-depth than I would have thought for a book like this, which was a nice surprise. I've never seen a book like this and think PC deserves credit for breaking new ground by introducing a book that gives recipes as well as a story to compliment them. Or should I say, a new story with recipes to compliment it! Basically, it describes a Kay Scarpetta feast made with love for two of her favorite people, in detail and uninterrupted by crime. These feasts are one of my favorite parts of these novels, and this one reads just like the novels, although just a little more in depth (and of course with recipes!) I suspect you need to be a fan to really enjoy this book, but I entertain often and our guests haved raved over every dish we've made from this book (as well as from the other PC recipe book Food To Die For, which I also love dearly). This Winter Table story pairs with its recipes better than a fine wine, and gives the reader not only a recipe but the heart and soul and inspiration to warm your heart as well as your tummy. :)

This slim, black and white book is a wonderful gift for fans of Dr. Kay Scarpetta. The book is structured into fiction-like chapters, with headings for the "recipes." The recipes are not strictly linear recipes. There are no lists of ingredients here, just stories to accompany the food.

For example, on page 5 you will find a recipe for "Marino's Cause of Death Eggnog." The author uses a play on words with "yokes" to insinuate the kind of death that was approaching. The recipe includes the dialogue of the characters (Marino, Lucy, and Scarpetta) as Marino makes the eggnog, and the characters sip it.

On page 93, Dr. Kay herself gives a personal note to the reader. "Since the fun of this is that no concoction will ever be the same, you are encouraged to take notes." Five pages of note-lined paper follow this challenge. This little note is the key to this cookbook: since the recipes are not exact, enjoy yourself by making them up! The book provides only basic outlines of the ingredients. It's up to you to decide how much salt or how many eggs! Lose yourself in Scarpetta's world!

This is a wonderful treasure for fans of Patricia Cornwell. The free-flowing dialogue makes for a unique and unorthodox collection of recipes.

Why are people so venemous when an author tries something different from their normal genre? I really enjoyed this book, although it made me very hungry to read it. It inspired me to make a wonderful pizza, although I must admit that I didn't go to my local bagel shop to ask if I could buy some of their flour!. It was a heartwarming story, and if it had written by anyone else, I think everyone would have loved it. I love the tenderness and compassion Marino shows, in his own way,that little boy.

This was a gift for my Mom who is a serious Kay Scarpetta fan. She wrote and told me that if I had asked her if she wanted a Patrica Cornwell book for Christmas, she would have said she had them all...however, she told me she had never heard of this book before and was loving every minute she read it....what helped me decide to purchase this book for her was one of the online reviews that said if someone was a serious Patricia Cornwell fan then they would enjoy this book...it's true...she does! Thank you so much...

This was an interesting, fun little book and made me want to try out the recipes. I have read all of the Scarpetta books and thoroughly enjoyed each of them. This is in part because I am a Virginian and know the streets and communities about which Cornwell writes. This is one of the two Cornwell books I do not own and would like very much to see re-printed as I hope to collect all of her work.

This book was not meant to be a suspense novel. It was more of a gathering of favorite characters with whom the reader enjoys. I enjoyed this book for what it was. If you really love Kay and Marino, give this a try for a light read. It's like having them over for company.