Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Point of Origin (Unabridged) by Patricia Daniels Cornwell, Kate Reading, Swanepoel ISBN: 0375403531 Publisher: Bantam Books-Audio Pub. Date: July, 1998 Format: Audio Cassette Volumes: 8 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.25
Rating: 4
Summary: I kept up the page turning...
Comment: 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.
Rating: 4
Summary: There seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel for Kay
Comment: I enjoyed this book a lot more than the previous installment to the Kay-Lance-Carrie death triangle. It was darker and grittier and dealt with more personal issues. I enjoyed the technical details and did not find it any gorier than any of her others. I do not think that it would be a good place for newbie fans of Cornwell to start their association with Dr Scarpetta - start at the beginning and follow the character development and see what you think. I am looking forward to the next book as I am dying to know (no pun intended :-) how they take up the story after all the traumatic events in Point of Origin but I am hoping that things are going to be a bit more upbeat and positive for Kay. I would hate to walk around as depressed as herself and Lucy seem to be all the time! All in all, a good read with as satisfying an ending as could be expected in the circumstances. PS. Delighted with the Irish reference!
Rating: 2
Summary: Same Old, Same Old...
Comment: Patricia Cornwall's same depressing formula is getting very boring. Dr Scarpetti will once again not be allowed a shred of happiness. Her only long term relationship is with her equally long suffering niece. If you've read one, you've basically read them all.
 |
Title: Unnatural Exposure by Patricia Daniels Cornwell ISBN: 0425163407 Publisher: Berkley Pub Group Pub. Date: July, 1998 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: Cause of Death by Patricia Daniels Cornwell, Marx ISBN: 0425158616 Publisher: Berkley Pub Group Pub. Date: September, 1997 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: Black Notice by Patricia Daniels Cornwell ISBN: 0425175405 Publisher: Berkley Pub Group Pub. Date: 01 August, 2000 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: From Potter's Field by Patricia Daniels Cornwell, Don Peppers ISBN: 0425154092 Publisher: Berkley Pub Group Pub. Date: August, 1996 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: The Body Farm by Patricia Daniels Cornwell ISBN: 0425147622 Publisher: Berkley Pub Group Pub. Date: September, 1995 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
