RED MIST

Narrator Kate Burton is the best thing about the latest Patricia Cornwell mystery. Her crisp, no-nonsense delivery helps keep an unnecessarily complex plot moving, from beginning to convoluted end. The question that comes to mind while listening is why does forensics scientist Kay Scarpetta act so illogically? Scarpetta delves into the twisted past of her former deputy chief, Jack Fielding, who was murdered in the last novel. From there, the story branches out to a confusing miasma of murder and other mysterious doings. The solution is a bit far-fetched, and the method Scarpetta uses to solve the murders is even more unlikely. It's not a bad book, but it pales before Cornwell's work of a decade ago. M.S. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2012]