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Cruel and Unusual: A Kay Scarpetta Novel
 
 
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Cruel and Unusual: A Kay Scarpetta Novel (Paperback)

~ (Author) "It is two weeks before Christmas..." (more)
Key Phrases: morgue supervisor, ten print cards, autopsy suite, Jennifer Deighton, Eddie Heath, Robyn Naismith (more...)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
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  Hardcover, June 9, 1993 $16.50 $1.99 $0.01
  Paperback, October 24, 2005 $9.99 $2.25 $0.01
  Mass Market Paperback, April 30, 1994 -- $0.96 $0.01
  Audio, Cassette, Audiobook, Unabridged $30.36 $20.00 $6.39
  Unknown Binding, December 31, 1993 -- -- $0.01

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Cruel and Unusual: A Kay Scarpetta Novel + All That Remains: A Scarpetta Novel (Kay Scarpetta) + The Body Farm (Scarpetta)
Price For All Three: $29.97

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  • This item: Cruel and Unusual: A Kay Scarpetta Novel by Patricia Cornwell

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This fourth mystery to feature Virginia Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kay Scarpetta was a 12-week PW bestseller.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


From School Library Journal

YA-In this fourth Kay Scarpetta mystery, the chief medical examiner for the state of Virginia is once again challenged by gruesome murder and confusing evidence. How could the fingerprints of Ronnie Joe Waddell appear at the scene of a murdered psychic after Waddell was executed in the electric chair? In the midst of many puzzling matters come other difficult issues to confront Kay as she tries to do her job. She becomes the object of hysterical media attention, and finds that she herself might be indicted for the very crimes she is trying to solve. Someone is sabotaging her efforts by hacking into her computer files and leaking information. Exasperated, she calls upon her niece, Lucy, a 17-year-old computer whiz, whom readers will remember from earlier "Scarpetta" novels. Along with FBI agent Benton Wesley and police chum Pete Marino, Lucy helps Kay solve the murders and ferret out the traitor in her office. YAs will enjoy the teen's angst and the exciting twist at the book's end.
Carolyn E. Gecan, Thomas Jefferson Sci-Tech, Fairfax County, VA
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

  • Paperback: 416 pages
  • Publisher: Pocket (October 25, 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1416505407
  • ISBN-13: 978-1416505402
  • Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #59,270 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Patricia Cornwell
Patricia Cornwell
Lorelei King
Lorelei King

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First Sentence:
It is two weeks before Christmas. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
morgue supervisor, ten print cards, autopsy suite, journal tapes, chief medical examiner
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Jennifer Deighton, Eddie Heath, Robyn Naismith, Ben Stevens, Ronnie Waddell, Aunt Kay, Susan Story, Ronnie Joe Waddell, Helen Grimes, Benton Wesley, Nicholas Grueman, Charles Hale, Neils Vander, State Police, Frank Donahue, Jason Story, Miss Deighton, Christmas Eve, Governor Norring, Hilton Sullivan, Mark James, Spring Street, Fort Myers Beach, John Deighton, Paris Trout
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Cruel and Unusual: A Kay Scarpetta Novel
75% buy the item featured on this page:
Cruel and Unusual: A Kay Scarpetta Novel 4.1 out of 5 stars (93)
$9.99
The Body Farm (Scarpetta)
7% buy
The Body Farm (Scarpetta) 3.8 out of 5 stars (135)
$9.99
All That Remains: A Scarpetta Novel (Kay Scarpetta)
6% buy
All That Remains: A Scarpetta Novel (Kay Scarpetta) 4.2 out of 5 stars (107)
$9.99
From Potter's Field (Scarpetta)
5% buy
From Potter's Field (Scarpetta) 3.7 out of 5 stars (140)
$7.99
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Customer Reviews

93 Reviews
5 star:
 (40)
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 (31)
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 (15)
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 (5)
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Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (93 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Not as Gruesome as the Last One., September 29, 2003
By Vesta Irene (the Pacific Northwest) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Cruel & Unusual (Kay Scarpetta Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)
This book opens with the execution of rapist/murderer Ronnie Joe Waddell and the following autopsy. Not long after murder victims start showing up around Richmond that look like they were committed by Waddell. How can that be? He's dead. Then his prints show up at a crime scene and to top it off, Kay's assistant in murdered and the press blames Kay.

As usual PC carries over characters from her previous novels that we've come to know. Any second we expect cop buddy Pete Marino to drop dead from his excesses and niece Lucy is still annoying (to me anyway). Thankfully, the descriptions of the murders and the autopsies don't seem as gruesome as the last one ("All that Remains) and like the last one, this thriller gets five stars, because I just couldn't put it down.

Reviewed by Vesta Irene
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars One bad egg is forgiveable, November 2, 2001
This review is from: Cruel & Unusual (Kay Scarpetta Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)
This is the worst of the Scarpetta series. which is quite an achievement seeing as all the others are brilliant. My favourites being the claustrophobic "The Body Farm", and the superbly dark "Point of Origin". I have loved all the Scarpetta's, and read them at least twice over, and i still think this is the worst.

The plot was very complicated, and it all seemed a bit of a mess. The characters were nothing special, and i this is the only book in which Cornwell manage to bore me with her normally insightful computer terminology. It's too long, and basically i dont think it has any substance. There is a great potential. The idea for the plot is superb, and could well have been one of the best, but somewhere along the line it all slips. I cant put my finger on it, but i just didnt come away from this with the satisfaction i normally get out of a Kay Scarpetta book.

Nevertheless this is still a necessary book to read if you intend to read the entire series. It is one of the major turning points. The first book to feature Temple Gault, who would later lead to Carrie Grethen, Newton Joyce, and all the other catastrophic events which culminate in the next turning point of "The Last Precint". each one has signalled a new era for Patricia Cornwell, and each one has not been quite as good as the others. But The Last Precint was still much better than this. It is, admittedly, very clever, but far too complicated, and im surprised it got the CWA's gold dagger.

nevertheless, i have given it two stars purely because it is such a major point in Scarpetta's life. You must read it if you intend to read the entire series, but dont expect to enjoy it as much as you do the others.

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Plot hole dampens...plot, September 17, 2000
By Kristen Heiss (Atlanta Georgia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Cruel & Unusual (Kay Scarpetta Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)
In this fourth installment of the Kay Scarpetta series, we find the Chief Medical Examiner of Virginia chasing a most challenging miscreant - a murderer with no pattern to his destruction except the intent to play games with the authorities hunting him. The book is a must-read for those addicted to Cornwell's well-researched suspense novels, since it sets the stage for a showdown in From Potter's Field. But a major plot hole revealed in the first few pages leaves the reader feeling cheated for the remainder of the novel.

We enter the story with Scarpetta recovering from the death of a close friend. While this development certainly bodes well for future plot twists, it leaves the reader frustrated with the current one. The few details of the death surface mostly at the end of the story and while we're told of Scarpetta's devastation, we really don't witness it. Seasoned Cornwell fans are accustomed to these shallow depths in characterization but it nonetheless puts a damper on an otherwise entertaining mystery.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Fingerprints
Cornwell takes hold of your mind and does to let go until Scarpetta finds her solution. There is a horrible crime scene but it does produce some fingerprints. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Ruth Thompson

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Deal and Fast Shipping
I bought this book used and it was in very good condition. Also, I received it within a week, which was nice.
Published 5 months ago by Joanne K.

2.0 out of 5 stars formula type writing
My first foray into this writer was her latest book, Scarpetta. I enjoyed it....so I purchased this effort and several others she had written. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Anthony W. Dopke

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the Better Books in the Scarpetta Series
This book is a great page-turner, perfect for the beach, plane or vacation.

The chief medical examiner, Kay Scarpetta, is being framed and she needs to prove herself... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Bonnie Brody

5.0 out of 5 stars Unusual & Great
Cornwell did a great job writing this book. The plot is wonderful and the crew is working together to track a killer. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Book Worm

3.0 out of 5 stars Cruel and Unusual
I'm an audio book fan, I prefer unabridge and this was abridge and the story just doesn't flow. All of a sudden your in one area and then jump to another. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Charles H. Johnson

3.0 out of 5 stars What if the death row criminal hadn't died?
Another test drive into the world of mystery, this book is my first book written by Patricia Cornwall. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Crystal Starr Light

3.0 out of 5 stars Audio Cassette Review
The book was much better. The abridgement was too much and took too much away from the story so that you never got a sense of the characters. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Holly L. Healy

3.0 out of 5 stars Forensically beautiful, yet disappointing,
The characters are so wooden and there is so much innuendo as to whose relationship is with or to whom. Read more
Published 14 months ago by F.Faulkner

5.0 out of 5 stars Cruel and Unusual
I didn't find anything wrong with it at all. It was in great shape.
Published 15 months ago by Amber Walton

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