Published 2021 Harper Collins Publishers
398 pages
ISBN: 978-0-00-8520577
Genre: Crime
Keywords: Kay Scarpetta, medical examiner, forensic medicine, space autopsy, conspiracy, new work, colleagues’ old loyalties, opioid overdose, Narcan,
Grade: 3/5
Will I read more from this author: probably not
This is a book told by Kay, she has just started in a new position in Washington DC, to try to put order in the disorganized office of the medical examiner. She has moved to DC from the Boston area with her husband, an FBI psychologist, her sister, Dorothy and her husband, Marino, who was her close investigator earlier as well as Lucy, Dorothy’s daughter, who has lost her family to COVID. Lucy and Marino work together in security. This is the first book I have read by this author, so there is some disconnect in the story as former things are supposed to be known.
Gwen is a neighbor and is murdered; Lucy and Marino had tried to help her get security installed but she was not interested. She has just moved here to start a new job for a company involved in classified secrete things, printing organs. Gwen was not friendly, she appeared superior and not very likeable. It took time to identify her, as the killer had cut off her hands. Her company declared her missing.
Another woman was murdered 7 months ago near the same place, Gwen is found. Kay starts to investigate, but is met with resistance from her secretary and her boss, who actually fires her but announced that Kay resigned. So, a lot of fake announcements.
Kay gets to drink a bottle of wine that was tampered with, a new opioid that cannot be traced.
It is suspected that Gwen was a spy for the Russians as she was in contract with an American on the international space station; there two bodies are discovered to have been shot dead. So, Kay is called to the White House to undertake a virtual autopsy through video conference working through other astronauts. It will be a few months before the samples will get back to Earth. So the autopsy is not a real autopsy.
Kay and Lucy are attacked in Kay’s home but they manage to overcome him and he is killed.
I think the story is thin, too many things are not developed in depth; too fanciful to have murder on the space station I believe. The detection, well, it is all speculation ad in my opinion too loose endings. Too much about the staff’s loyalties to the failing prior medical examiner.
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