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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
mysterious
slow-paced
Not the worst Scarpetta book, but close. I continue to be amazed that Marino is still employed and trusted by Kay. Lucy wasn’t quite so annoying this time around, but she also wasn’t featured much. Kay spent so much time reliving a two month long relationship from twenty plus years ago, I kept expecting it to have some surprise impact on the current situation. Nope. And OMG can we be done with Carrie already?! I miss the early books with fascinating characters and a solid mystery with a heart pounding ending. This was a dud. Felt like a token situation at the end, just for some sort of action.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The only reason I am giving this book two stars is because I appreciate that the author keeps up with the timeline by mentioning current events and new forensic and scientific technologies. The author always does an impressive and extensive amount of research going onto the next book in this series. I would also like to state that I am typically a nonfiction reader, and I only read two series with religiosity- this is one of the two. I enjoyed this series tremendously when I found it several years ago, and I have read every book. If I didn't take my commitment to the series seriously, I would have divorced it by now. I truly hope there is another book in the series and that it goes back to being a three- and four-star review series for me, but this one did not cut the mustard. I wasn't sure my eyeballs could handle much more rolling. The last few chapters of the book were really interesting, though the bulk of the book was spent on Kay thinking about her past relationships, Lucy's past relationships, Marino's past relationships, etc. This book could have been considerably less tedious, and the last few chapters where the case was wrapped up with a cute little bow, though interesting, was somewhat of a letdown. Spoilers ahead.
******SPOILER ALERT BELOW THIS POINT******
Lucy: Slightly less annoying in this book than in previous ones. I really miss the days when she was my favorite character, but that ship has sailed, I am afraid. Her attitude is infuriating, though she was not quite as self-important in this book as in prior ones.
Dorothy: Still annoying. Still hate her.
Marino: When you read a fiction book, you typically like to escape the world. Marino is the embodiment of the people in my geographical region I strive to avoid. We have so many people just like that, and now that he has embraced the bigfoot hunting and alien watching, it is just.... he didn't need another quality to make him distasteful.
Kay: I realize she is the main character, thus the hero of the story, but WOW. I can see where Lucy's sense of self-importance comes from. She absorbed it from this one.
The Villains: There are plenty of extremely unlikeable characters throughout this entire series, and there were several in this book. Why do none of these people ever die?? And why can we not finally get rid of one of these people for good?? We do not need to resurrect them every few books simply to irritate the masses.
******SPOILER ALERT BELOW THIS POINT******
Lucy: Slightly less annoying in this book than in previous ones. I really miss the days when she was my favorite character, but that ship has sailed, I am afraid. Her attitude is infuriating, though she was not quite as self-important in this book as in prior ones.
Dorothy: Still annoying. Still hate her.
Marino: When you read a fiction book, you typically like to escape the world. Marino is the embodiment of the people in my geographical region I strive to avoid. We have so many people just like that, and now that he has embraced the bigfoot hunting and alien watching, it is just.... he didn't need another quality to make him distasteful.
Kay: I realize she is the main character, thus the hero of the story, but WOW. I can see where Lucy's sense of self-importance comes from. She absorbed it from this one.
The Villains: There are plenty of extremely unlikeable characters throughout this entire series, and there were several in this book. Why do none of these people ever die?? And why can we not finally get rid of one of these people for good?? We do not need to resurrect them every few books simply to irritate the masses.
Chief Medical Examiner Kay Scarpetta is devastated to find out that the latest victim she’s been sent to examine is her former lover Sal Giordano. Ridiculed for his belief in extraterrestrials, it’s suspiciously fitting that his body was found in a crop circle of petals, making it look like he was dropped out of a flying saucer. While Scarpetta is determined to find out what really happened to Sal, she’s also working a case that involves the death of a little girl, whose parents say she accidentally shot herself, but they are obnoxious liars and there are obvious signs of neglect and physical abuse on the girl.
This is the first book in the series I have ever read, but I didn’t have any trouble catching on. I assume her relationship with Sal was featured in one of the previous 27 books, but I could still read this one like a standalone. This was a decent mystery and played out like a tv show. Now I’m very interested in watching the Amazon Prime version of the series starring Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis.
Thank you, @1PCornwell and @GrandCentralPub for my gifted copy. I love #bookmail!
This is the first book in the series I have ever read, but I didn’t have any trouble catching on. I assume her relationship with Sal was featured in one of the previous 27 books, but I could still read this one like a standalone. This was a decent mystery and played out like a tv show. Now I’m very interested in watching the Amazon Prime version of the series starring Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis.
Thank you, @1PCornwell and @GrandCentralPub for my gifted copy. I love #bookmail!
I could be at fault since this is my first experience with the Kay Scarpetta series, but I had a tough time connecting with "Identity Unknown" until I hit the 43% mark. The characters felt somewhat distant, and I was trying to figure out their identities. However, once I got past that point, I found myself enjoying it more as I started to understand the story better. The ending was fantastic too! I'm definitely looking forward to reading or listening to more from this author in the future.
On a positive note, the premise of the story was quite intriguing—who wouldn't be curious about a body that falls from a UFO in an abandoned amusement park? The narrator truly excelled in her role, and at times, I was convinced there was another voice actor bringing the other characters to life. Her performance made the listening experience enjoyable and engaging.
Thank you Netgally and Hachette Audio | Grand Central Publishing for allowing me to listen to this audiobook.
On a positive note, the premise of the story was quite intriguing—who wouldn't be curious about a body that falls from a UFO in an abandoned amusement park? The narrator truly excelled in her role, and at times, I was convinced there was another voice actor bringing the other characters to life. Her performance made the listening experience enjoyable and engaging.
Thank you Netgally and Hachette Audio | Grand Central Publishing for allowing me to listen to this audiobook.
Another great book in the Kay Scarpetta series. I love it when Scarpetta gets called in by alphabet agencies to investigate ultra-secret cases, you just know the mystery is going to be weird and interesting.
I loved the ending, I have been waiting for that ending for a while.
January LaVoy did a great job narrating the book. I have voices in my head that I have assigned to the characters throughout the years and January's narration felt spot on.
I loved the ending, I have been waiting for that ending for a while.
January LaVoy did a great job narrating the book. I have voices in my head that I have assigned to the characters throughout the years and January's narration felt spot on.
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Murder