2026 Book Review #2:Unnatural Death

 

This author is one of my very faves and I have read every single one of her Kay Scarpetta Mystery novels, in order, except for the latest 2.  This one I'm reviewing today is her 27th Kay Scarpetta book. The 28th is on my nightstand and the library said I can have it for  3 weeks. But before I get to #28, a book I requested back around Xmas time is finally able  so I'll read that one next. Winter is a good time to do a lot of reading.

STORY SUMMARY

Dr. Kay Scarpetta, chief medical examiner in Alexandria, Virginia, is in the northern part of the state's wilderness region to examine the remains of two bodies found in a lake and in a mineshaft.  The two bodies were campers who were wanted by federal law enforcement!  The victims have been beaten beyond recognition.  Other evidence is pointing to something terrifying and very puzzling and this includes a larger-than-life footprint.  It is truly one of the scariest body retrievals Kay has ever experienced in her very long career.  Now she has to discover who would commit such heinous murders....and why. 

And to top it all off.....someone from her past....and the past of her beloved niece Lucy, comes back to haunt them. Lucy is a computer genius, an expert in all things firearms, and works for the federal government often consulting for the ATF and the Secret Service. She works with her uncle Wesley Benton (Kay's husband) who is also brilliant and currently working for the Secret Service. He is also a past FBI Profiler and is excellent at that. Pete Marino, private investigator who has always worked closely with Kay and Lucy,  is also involved in this current case and has made a cast of the very large footprint which he thinks might be Bigfoot.  Benton and Lucy know about the evil person from the past.......but Kay and Pete have just found this information out and are shocked, angry and determined to find out the truth of these murders and the connection between some other apparent homicides.  Are they all connected to this person from the past? 

What is going on?? 

MY THOUGHTS

This was one of the better Kay Scarpetta books that I've read.

The characters are endearing, complicated in some ways, and almost like friends in other ways. The author does such a good job in keeping them going and interesting through this entire series.  We see Lucy grow up in the pages of a Scarpetta novel. We see Kay and Benton's relationship grow and change and endure. We see that Marino is still....Marino. And Dorothy is still....Dorothy.  If you have read any of the Kay Scarpetta books, you know what I mean. I do highly recommend this series. I like it because there's not a lot of explicit s*x scenes and she keeps the swearing down. 

The setting was diverse in this book and I liked that. There were woods, a farm, the city, the morgue, a mineshaft....and somehow they all connect...I won't reveal how as it would ruin the story for you. 

Once again, we see an evil character rise up whom we thought was dead from about 7 years ago.  It was so well crafted! 

The ending leaves us wondering about that evil woman and I'm looking forward to books 28 and 29 to see if she reappears in them. 

This particular story had some AI technology but it was well explained and easy to comprehend. Probably because this author herself is exploring AI technology and combine that with her talent for writing and you have a fantastic story. 

In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 17 and older (due to some mature content).

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 9.