FFS. Patricia Cornwell. Why do I bother??

[Jacksmania]

Her Scarpetta series is just crap. Why?? Why did I just get the latest one, "Port Mortuary" (especially as an audiobook so I can't just throw it across the room!).

Kay Scarpetta is a neurotic twat. Her relationship with Benton is completely dysfunctional. She is ridiculously insecure and thinks everyone hates her (and to be fair they probably do, especially me!). It's completely unrealistic that all these events should happen to one person. Yes, I know, that's why they call it fiction :o

Even DH knows how much I hate the books and at me for getting this latest one. Free, thank fuck!!! But still.

Why, why, why do I always expect the next book to be better?? That's like expecting that guy who wrote Coma and Virus and stuff (Robin Cook) to come up with something worth reading. Gggggnnnaaaarrrrrr!!!!

I, like all the other posters,loved the 1st few books, and then they really went downhill. Again, Kathy Reichs has got dull.

My current fave read and thankfully there are loads of books has to be Eve Dallas. She's sassy, Roarke's sexy and the books are laugh out loud funny at times.

Errmm I think Reacher is big enough to handle all of us :o

Oh, I heart Nora Roberts!! Her early early books were a bit crap but I've been reading her for about ten years now and I love her. Just listened to the most recent one, "The Search". So fab.

Blowfly was the turning point IIRC. Lots of paranoia about leaving evidence and not enough story.

I have just read "Bleed for me" by Ian Robotham. V.good.

My favourite authors are;

Neil white
John Connolly
Karin Slaughter
Val McDermid
Harlen
Author of The Janus Stone
C J Sansom

Another author who I think churns out complete drivel is James Patterson. His first books were brilliant but IMO he now thinks he's a franchise and has 2 page chapters.

Since we're doing recommendations, try a bit of Elizabeth George some time. Barbara Havers is my absolute superhero: finally someone who is not perfectly beautiful and adored by every male but just a normal, frumpy, bad tempered woman struggling to get on, just like the rest of us.

Harlen for me. Just started reading ''hold tight''.

Also agree about James Patterson loved his early books but when you start churning out 3 a year something has got to go and the quality went big time.

I like Harlan Cobin too.
Is Jack Reacher the hobo type that travels around America righting wrongs?
Books are ok but I'm always concerned about his hygiene. He never seems to wash or change his clothes.

I couldn't even finish the last PC and I loved her early books.

Traded her in for Val McDermid ( though it's too gory for me and I hide under my pillow) and the Peter James series of copper Roy Grace.

I went off Patricia Cornwell around the time of Blowfly as well. Tess Gerritsen is good: fairly unusual in that her main characters are both women, less predictable than Kathy Reichs nowadays.

I gave up on her when Benton came back, her style has completely changed from her fantastic earlier books.

Oh and didn't Mark die in the tube bombing but she hadnt been aware he was with an OW when he died.

I second Tess Gerritson, very gory though.
Did someone say Norah Roberts?
Just discovering her and liking the later books. She seems to have written hundreds

Lisa Jackson - Left to Die & Chosen to Die

Carol O'Connell

I'm going to post again as crime is all I ever read!!

Carol O'connell is fab but I think she has just finished the Mallory series. What an anti-heroine!

I loved Patricia cornwell's earlier stuff but her last four have been dire I haven't even been able to finish port mortuary I seriously have no idea what the hell it was meant to be about! And every character is now painfully hard work.

As an aside Mark was killed by a bomb in London but did not come back from the dead. Although it was revealed in a later book that he had been having an affair with someone whilst in London.

Completely agree, I really enjoyed the first few but found the last one unreadable and have donated it to a charity shop.

There was a list of European Crime writers in the Observer this week, they rated Fred Vargas highly.

I HATE Lucy in the Scarpetta books. One minute she's a geeky kid, then she's an FBI agent, then she's flying helicopters, then she's killing people in a really shifty horrible manner.

I also loved the first ones but now can't bring myself to read them. She should have stopped at least 6 books ago.

I like Lisa Gardener, and I also liked a Karen Rose one but then read another and realised it was pretty much exactly the same! Harlan Coben can usually be relied on to be pretty readable.

I agree, Lucy makes me

Jack Reacher does wash! He takes lots of showers whenever he can. He presses his trousers between the mattress and the box spring. He travels around, only carrying cash, (or more recently a debit card), his travel tooth brush and a passport.

I am half way through scarpetta and really struggling. I hate not finishing books though, but I am resenting every minute which I spend with it.
Also have just got to the bit where Shrew goes to the pet shop and its really put me off as I can not deal with anything of that nature at all.

Any chance of someone PMing me the outcome so at least I know?
Or (as this is my first post in this topic) am I breaking some unspoken rule? If so, sorry. But please help me!

I've read it but they've all merged into one so I can't even remember what happened!

What I want to know is when did Jack Fielding her deputy suddenly become this totally dysfunction, shadey character? Seems everyone she works with is doomed!!

Can't actually remember the ending to Scarpetta. It's Port Mortuary that I've given up on. Take my advice don't bother with it!!!

I'm just at the part in Port Mortuary where Benton tells Kay that "they have Jack Fielding" and she thinks he must be dead.
I'm only going to finish it because I hate wondering what the hell happened, but my goodness, it just sucks. Never again!

Let me know how it pans out jacksmania. I would have to start all over again if I wanted to finish it cause I haven't got a clue what it's about?!?!?

am almost at the end...I keep thinking I have missed a great chunk of the book cos its all kicking off and I have no idea why!