I have chosen to review the book Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell.

In doing so I
shall critically evaluate the book itself, along with its interpretation of the role portrayed
within the book of the ain character, Dr !ay "carpetta, a edical e#ainer who uses
forensic science to investigate urders.
$s this is the latest in a long series of adventures for Dr "carpetta, the character is well
established and even in her earliest dealings, appears that uch of her personal
circustances have been previously developed. %he book opens with a lengthy, vivid
scene as a young $erican tennis star is brutally tortured by the an holding her
hostage. &ur lead, Dr "carpetta, is asked due to her world renown in forensic
investigation, to consult with the Italian sei'ilitary Police, the Carabinieri, on the
urder. %he urder is coitted in Italy, while "carpetta is based in "outh Carolina
where she operates an independent forensic pathology practice. (pon returning hoe to
her practice without solving the Italian urder, "carpetta begins to uncover siilarities
between a urdered boy in "outh Carolina and the urdered tennis star. %his sets us the
ystery, which unfolds in third person narrative, using dialogue between the ain
investigators, e#tensive forensic e#planation and occasional forays into the ind of the
killer to deliver the story.
%he character of "carpetta is an interesting one and certainly coes across as a
coplicated person in that she has a wealth of background and eotional difficulties that
she was attepting to work through in her own head whilst progressing through the story
within the book. I liked this feature of her character as it certainly ade her ore huan
than the leads in any other crie novels that I have read. )hile I had not read any of
the earlier books in the "carpetta series of novels, I felt that these huan eleents added
to her cople#ity and certainly did not affect y en*oyent of the book, though I do feel
rather than continuing with the series, I should go back and read earlier novels. %he fact
that the story is told entirely in the third person narrative fro the position of each of the
ain characters, as well as countless uniportant additions spread throughout the book,
is good in that you are seeing how each part of their investigation unfolds. If one thing
akes that clearer than anything else, it+s that uch of the investigation in this tale
doesn+t see to attach specifically to our ain protagonist, Dr "carpetta. %he clues were
followed up by everyone, not en asse, but individually, and produced an eventual result
brought together by "carpetta as the lead. Probably this would be ore true to life than
having one iddle aged woan find all the evidence, track all the leads and eventually
trace the killer, but again, would it even be the central characters alone which would
chase down thee conclusions. I would not think so when the whole of the Italian Police
,orce and the -ational ,orensics $cadey are also investigating the urder of the tennis
player but neither ever develops further than the first chapter.
)here the third person narrative is successful in its descriptive roles, it also lets itself
down on character developent as it delivers too any characters who are not central to
the either urder investigation and for that atter, ean nothing and on occasion, would
even repulse the reader. %his is certainly true of her assistant, .arino, who is a drunken
bully who it sees has a crush on "carpetta but not the brains to stop hiself fro
wallowing in self pity thinking the world is against hi. %his is fro a an who
apparently was a high flying detective who has worked on a*or urder cases alongside
Dr "carpetta. &nly briefly does anyone even ention that due to his ost obvious faults
should he get the sack, itself oving directly out the lines of reality as, due to the nature
of the business Dr "carpetta is involved in, she, and the evidence it ust be said, cannot
carry passengers. %he one person that did ention to sack hi is her niece, /ucy, who
herself does appear to be a coputer genius, a spy, a detective, a woan+s rights activist,
a forensic investigator of renown and general super hero at ties0 I do not know
previous books and the way that this character has evolved but to e, it certainly sees
far fetched, thereby weakening the reader+s subersion into the actual story.
%he ain drawback of third person narrative is the fact that the criinal in this novel
reains very uch on the periphery and there is little or no insight into the otives he
has for such heinous cries. &ccasional forays into his psyche do not deliver and it is the
narrative of the investigators which develops the criinal+s role. %aking this fro the
point of the forensic investigative side of the book, I feel this benefits "carpetta+s role as
a forensic investigator, allowing her to develop her hypothesis without the book returning
tie again to the criinal ind who carried out the urder and how it was his
developent that led the investigation against hi, rather than the forensic detective
work carried out by "carpetta and her assistants.
.y one other criticis of the book is that soe of the plot is a little weak, soe events
are left une#plained, at least not fully and soe of the ways that the plot goes see a
little contrived. It does however keep "carpetta central to the plot, pulling her assistants
to her in order to develop the story. 1owever, it is understood that this certainly would
not be the case given her *ob role as she is independent of the police authorities in
whatever location her *ob takes her. Indeed, the point of having Italy+s leading forensic
officer, Captain Poma, a medico legale (???????????) with the Carabinieri, constantly
arguing with her about her observations, findings and general forensic investigative
procedures throughout the investigation, whilst at the sae tie attepting to ipress
her into bed, do not ring true of a true urder investigation, not with professionals
anyway. %o y ind it asks the 2uestion, if Captain Poa was the top forensic
investigator in Italy and literally 3what he says goes+, and subse2uently in opposition to
Dr "carpetta+s ideas all along, why was she ever involved in the first place, or indeed,
stay involved after she had returned to the (nited "tates.
%he criinal eleent of the book is as well'researched and tightly plotted but as
entioned, the concurrent plot line is a little weak and needed developed ore as soe
events are left une#plained. %his ay be due to the fact that the book is part of a series,
leaving to the avid reader to understand and new readers only to guess at. (nfortunately,
rather than fully e#plaining circustances, uch of the book develops around the
interplay of relationships between the investigators not directly involved in the two plots.
%his results is a serious lack of focus to the crie and investigations as you have two
independent stories being played out which happen to be concurrent, but don+t really
interrelate, with the result that it+s hard to follow at ties which piece of evidence relates
to what crie. %he author certainly akes you feel that you are in the roo with her as
the forensic detective work is developed as the narrative is certainly descriptive and
inforative to any reader, whether they have previous forensics education or not,
however, her continued use of acronys could slow down a reader without a forensics
background. $s to forensic detail, to e, it certainly appears up to the inute with
anything I have seen in the television series C"I, and Dr "carpetta is seen to use it often
in her search for the killer. %he last chapter, whilst building up the forensic evidence in
previous chapters, is certainly a let down as the urderer literally turns up behind her as
she is about to enter her door. ,or e, this was certainly a negative eleent to the book
as "carpetta and her tea had built up to a delivery of evidence by which to apprehend
the urderer, not for hi *ust to appear and coplete the story.