A review by ryanneliza
From Potter's Field by Patricia Cornwell

2.0

This series is such a roller coaster ride of quality, and I really did not like this one. Most of this book is an exploration of morality with little meaningful crime solving. Marino, who is an uncomfortable dude with some stereotypical quirks in the earlier books, is cast as an absolute jerk in this novel for the sole purpose of exploring the rejection of rampant sexism and homophobia I’m not sure Marino actually displays in earlier books. He always gave off “awkward but well-intentioned macho guy” vibes in previous novels. Throughout this degradation of Marino’s character, we also see Kay pursue an affair with her married-sometimes-partner-boss-FBI-guy, so I’m not sure Kay is really the best person to explore issues of morality and equality here. I found the serial killer, Temple Gault, to be underwhelming and predictable, and I was entirely disappointed in his sudden downfall. This series is likely going to turn out to be another overdone set of crime novels where readers can feel the decline in attention to detail as the author meets deadlines for multi-book deals. I’ll finish the series, but I’m already losing steam.