When a fresh cadaver is delivered to his lab, forensic pathologist Andy Broussard discovers that the deceased is a convict supposedly serving time in the Louisiana state prison -- and prison officials claim that the man is still in his cell. Broussard enlists the help of his former colleague Kit Franklyn to discover the truth behind the bizarre turn of events. Kit travels up to the prison to photograph and fingerprint the convict. However, upon her arrival the prison officials claim that the convict in question died during the night and was cremated immediately. Meanwhile, Broussard follows another lead and finds himself drawn into a sinister murder plot. Now, in order to survive, Broussard must quickly determine how these events are connected.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Kirkus Reviews
Still shaken after her kidnapping in Louisiana Fever (1996), psychological profiler Kit Franklyn has banished herself to a menial job at a photography gallery when she gets a hurry call from her old boss, Chief Medical Examiner Andy Broussard. Can Kit run up to Angola State Prison and satisfy herself and Andy as to whether the man whose fingerprints seem to place him at a recent homicide really was at the time (as the Angola warden claims) still enjoying the state's hospitality? The routine (albeit sinister) errand spins wildly out of control. As soon as the warden tells her that Ronald Cicero has just died and, oops, been cremated to boot, you know how the rest of Kit's day will go; it doesn't hit bottom till long after she leaves a funeral home in nearby Courville run by the warden's brother. Back in New Orleans, the governor taps Kit to avenge that nightmarish day by going undercover as a lab tech at Agrilabs, which his office has tied to that Courville mortuary, while Andy's off to Memphis to investigate the fatal heart attack of a physiologist who's also somehow involved. Donaldson's expert crosscutting between Andy and Kit makes all this intrigue sound much less complicated than it does in summary, even though the final surprise (reaching as it does to implicate the only suspects who haven't all along been marked as guilty) goes over the top. Patricia Cornwell Lite, with all the streamlined thrills and gripping forensic detail Donaldson's fans have come to expect. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From the Publisher
Donaldson's brilliant first-hand knowledge of forensics--combined with a sultry flavor of New Orleans--equals a series that provides "sheer pulse-pounding reading excitement" (The Clarion Ledger) and "genuine heart-stopping suspense" (Publishers Weekly). With ingenuity and authentic detail, Donaldson presents a spellbinding mystery that will delight fans of Patricia Cornwell.
"All the streamlined thrills and gripping forensic detail Donaldson's fans have come to expect." --Kirkus
"The autopsies are detailed enough to make Patricia Cornwell fans move farther south for their forensic fixes." --Los Angeles Times
"Donaldson proves that he is every bit the nail-biting equal of Robin Cook and Michael Crichton." --The Clarion Ledger
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
More Broussard & Franklin Please!,
By
This review is from: Sleeping With the Crawfish (A St. Martin's dead letter mystery) (Paperback)
I have been reading DJ Donaldson's Kit Franklin & Andy Broussard mysteries since "Cajun Nights". I thought that first book would be a goof, a good-natured, silly mystery written by a hack - the cover was cheesy, the premise unlikely and the publisher was the dubious St. Martin Press, using their now-defunct "Mean Streets" imprint. But I bought it because I love New Orleans and I collect books set there. I was pleasantly surprised then, finding that the book was clever, well-written and worthy of a much better publisher. It's been about ten years since then and I'm still reading. The writing has improved, the characters have matured and reading a new Donaldson book feels like going home to visit old friends. In this installment, Kit has left the Medical Examiner's office after having been kidnaped and nearly losing her mentor Andy to a deadly virus. Andy, in an attempt to bolster her spirits, cons her into doing one final task for the ME's office - go check out the fingerprints of a prison inmate. Oddly, the prints were discovered at a recent crime scene, which should be impossible. Next thing you know, Kit has been run off the road, chased, threatened and generally taken for a ride. The twists and turns are both interesting and exciting, and it's nice to watch Kit get her confidence back, even though it means she makes some truly stupid mistakes. As usual, Donaldson's writing is crisp and clean, with no nonsense or purple prose. His evocation of the Louisiana swamps is every bit as lovely and sinister as James Lee Burkes, without being as cloying and flowery. I recommend these and other Broussard/Franklin books.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"Crawfish" is Hot!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Sleeping with the Crawfish (Andy Broussard/Kit Franklyn Mysteries) (Hardcover)
Last weekend, I was astoundingly lucky enough to stumble across an ARC of D. J. Donaldson's latest Andy Broussard/Kit Franklyn installment "Sleeping with the Crawfish" (obviously a play on the old gangster slang "sleeping with the fishes"). I had been waiting for this one to be released for about a year, so I wrestled out of the hands of the hapless shopper who was studying the back cover and bought it.
I am already a big fan of Dr. Donaldson's and I have enjoyed watching Kit and Andy develop over the past several years. This latest outing is undoubtedly the best of the series. Kit has left the Medical Examiner's office (those of you who read "Louisiana Fever" will know why) and gone to work for a New Orleans photography gallery. Andy, in an attempt to get her to return, asks her help on an unusual investigation. He has found that the fingerprints of a dead burglar are an exact match for a convict who is still incarcerated. What follows is a dark and suspenseful roller coaster ride exposing small-town corruption and big-time money. If you've read Dr. Donaldson's previous books, you'll love this one. If you haven't read any, this may not be a good place to start. It might be better to step back a few and catch up. At the very least, read "Louisiana Fever", soon to be released in softcover by St. Martin Press' "Dead Letters" imprint. "Sleeping with the Crawfish" is due October 1st.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Glad to have found it,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Sleeping With the Crawfish (A St. Martin's dead letter mystery) (Paperback)
Very difficult to locate a new paperback of this out-of-publish book. Was shipped promptly. Thanks.
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