What do you think?
Rate this book
Kay Scarpetta #3, 4
The Scarpetta Collection Volume II: All That Remains and Cruel & Unusual
International publishing sensation Patricia Cornwell's legion of readers will welcome this omnibus edition of her third and fourth mega-best-selling Kay Scarpetta novels, All That Remains and Cruel & Unusual. These two novels, presented here complete and unabridged, helped to confirm Patricia Cornwell's status as queen of the forensic thriller and one of the world's top bestselling authors.
All That Remains : A killer is stalking young lovers. Taking their lives and leaving just a tantalizing clue.
When the bodies of young couples start turning up in remote woodland areas, Dr. Kay Scarpetta's task as Virginia's Chief Medical Examiner is made more difficult by the effects of the elements. Eight times she must write that the cause of death is undetermined.
But when the latest young woman to go missing is the daughter of one of America's most powerful women, Kay also finds herself prey to political pressure and press harassment. The killings must stop. Now.
Scarpetta soon discovers that someone is withholding vital evidence, or even faking it. Meanwhile, a cunning sadistic killer is still at large.
Cruel & Unusual At 11:05 one December evening in Richmond, Virginia, convicted murderer Ronnie Joe Waddell is pronounced dead in the electric chair. At the morgue, Dr. Kay Scarpetta has been waiting for Waddell's body. Preparing to perform a postmortem before the subject is dead is a strange feeling for Scarpetta, but she has been here before. And Waddell's death is not the only newsworthy event on this freezing night: the grotesquely wounded body of a young boy is found propped against a garbage Dumpster. To Scarpetta, the two cases seem unrelated, until she recalls that the body of Waddell's victim had been arranged in a strikingly similar position.
Was Waddell innocent? Is someone else out there, who may attack again?
All That Remains : A killer is stalking young lovers. Taking their lives and leaving just a tantalizing clue.
When the bodies of young couples start turning up in remote woodland areas, Dr. Kay Scarpetta's task as Virginia's Chief Medical Examiner is made more difficult by the effects of the elements. Eight times she must write that the cause of death is undetermined.
But when the latest young woman to go missing is the daughter of one of America's most powerful women, Kay also finds herself prey to political pressure and press harassment. The killings must stop. Now.
Scarpetta soon discovers that someone is withholding vital evidence, or even faking it. Meanwhile, a cunning sadistic killer is still at large.
Cruel & Unusual At 11:05 one December evening in Richmond, Virginia, convicted murderer Ronnie Joe Waddell is pronounced dead in the electric chair. At the morgue, Dr. Kay Scarpetta has been waiting for Waddell's body. Preparing to perform a postmortem before the subject is dead is a strange feeling for Scarpetta, but she has been here before. And Waddell's death is not the only newsworthy event on this freezing night: the grotesquely wounded body of a young boy is found propped against a garbage Dumpster. To Scarpetta, the two cases seem unrelated, until she recalls that the body of Waddell's victim had been arranged in a strikingly similar position.
Was Waddell innocent? Is someone else out there, who may attack again?
672 pages, Hardcover
First published August 12, 1999
3 people are currently reading
288 people want to read
About the author
Patricia Cornwell
197 books19.8k followersPatricia Cornwell sold her first novel, Postmortem, in 1990 while working as a computer analyst at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Richmond, Virginia. Postmortem, was the first bona fide forensic thriller. It paved the way for an explosion of entertainment featuring in all things forensic across film, television and literature.
Postmortem would go on to win the Edgar, Creasey, Anthony, and Macavity awards as well as the French Prix du Roman d’Aventure prize – the first book ever to claim all these distinctions in a single year. To date, Cornwell’s books have sold some 100 million copies in thirty-six languages in over 120 countries. She’s authored twenty-nine New York Times bestsellers.
Patricia’s novels center primarily on medical examiner Kay Scarpetta along with her tech-savvy niece Lucy and fellow investigator Pete Marino. Celebrating 25 years, these characters have grown into an international phenomenon, winning Cornwell the Sherlock Award for best detective created by an American author, the Gold Dagger Award, the RBA Thriller Award, and the Medal of Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters for her contributions to literary and artistic development.
Fox 2000 bought the rights to Kay Scarpetta. Working with producer Liz Friedman, Marvel’s Jessica Jones and fellow Marvel EP and Twilight Saga scribe Melissa Rosenberg to develop the film and find Scarpetta a home on the big screen.
After earning her degree in English from Davidson College in 1979, she began working at the Charlotte Observer.
Cornwell received widespread attention and praise for her series of articles on prostitution and crime in downtown Charlotte. From the Charlotte Observer, Cornwell moved to a job with the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Virginia – a post she would later bestow upon the fictional Kay Scarpetta.
When not writing from her Boston home, Patricia tirelessly researches cutting-edge forensic technologies to include in her work. Her interests span outside the literary: Patricia co-founded of the Conservation Scientist Chair at the Harvard University Art Museums. She appears as a forensic consultant on CNN and serves as a member of Harvard-affiliated McLean Hospital’s National Council, where she advocates for psychiatric research. She’s helped fund the ICU at Cornell’s Animal Hospital, the scientific study of a Confederate submarine, the archaeological excavation of Jamestown, and a variety of law enforcement charities. Patricia is also committed to
funding scholarships and literacy programs. Her advice to aspiring authors: “Start writing. And don’t take no for an answer.”
Social and Digital Outlets
http://www.patriciacornwell.com
https://www.facebook.com/patricia.cor...
https://twitter.com/1pcornwell
https://instagram.com/1pcornwell/
Other areas of expertise & interests
Forensics | Forensic Technologies | Ballistics | Weapons | Explosives | Pathology & Autopsies | Crime | Historical and Unsolved Criminal Cases | Jack The Ripper | Helicopter Piloting | Suba Diving | Archaeological Excavation Experience |
Postmortem would go on to win the Edgar, Creasey, Anthony, and Macavity awards as well as the French Prix du Roman d’Aventure prize – the first book ever to claim all these distinctions in a single year. To date, Cornwell’s books have sold some 100 million copies in thirty-six languages in over 120 countries. She’s authored twenty-nine New York Times bestsellers.
Patricia’s novels center primarily on medical examiner Kay Scarpetta along with her tech-savvy niece Lucy and fellow investigator Pete Marino. Celebrating 25 years, these characters have grown into an international phenomenon, winning Cornwell the Sherlock Award for best detective created by an American author, the Gold Dagger Award, the RBA Thriller Award, and the Medal of Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters for her contributions to literary and artistic development.
Fox 2000 bought the rights to Kay Scarpetta. Working with producer Liz Friedman, Marvel’s Jessica Jones and fellow Marvel EP and Twilight Saga scribe Melissa Rosenberg to develop the film and find Scarpetta a home on the big screen.
After earning her degree in English from Davidson College in 1979, she began working at the Charlotte Observer.
Cornwell received widespread attention and praise for her series of articles on prostitution and crime in downtown Charlotte. From the Charlotte Observer, Cornwell moved to a job with the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Virginia – a post she would later bestow upon the fictional Kay Scarpetta.
When not writing from her Boston home, Patricia tirelessly researches cutting-edge forensic technologies to include in her work. Her interests span outside the literary: Patricia co-founded of the Conservation Scientist Chair at the Harvard University Art Museums. She appears as a forensic consultant on CNN and serves as a member of Harvard-affiliated McLean Hospital’s National Council, where she advocates for psychiatric research. She’s helped fund the ICU at Cornell’s Animal Hospital, the scientific study of a Confederate submarine, the archaeological excavation of Jamestown, and a variety of law enforcement charities. Patricia is also committed to
funding scholarships and literacy programs. Her advice to aspiring authors: “Start writing. And don’t take no for an answer.”
Social and Digital Outlets
http://www.patriciacornwell.com
https://www.facebook.com/patricia.cor...
https://twitter.com/1pcornwell
https://instagram.com/1pcornwell/
Other areas of expertise & interests
Forensics | Forensic Technologies | Ballistics | Weapons | Explosives | Pathology & Autopsies | Crime | Historical and Unsolved Criminal Cases | Jack The Ripper | Helicopter Piloting | Suba Diving | Archaeological Excavation Experience |
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 26, 2009
A very exciting book - until you get to the end. There was such a great build up of suspense and intrigue, which just kind of fizzled out by the time Cornwell got around to telling us who the culprit was and why. It was just one of those anti-climactic endings that leaves you saying, "Oh. Ok. Didn't see that one coming. Weird." Despite the fizzle, I still really liked the book. It kept me on the end of my seat and kept me guessing right up to the "Oh. Ok." part.
April 25, 2021
At first, I was confused. Only five CDs for two books? Then I figured it must be a "taste test," a teaser for the unabridged books. I won't be reading the unabridged books, although it was fun reading the excerpts.
January 22, 2025
just ok listened to on the way home from Fl
February 12, 2011
After re-reading the first four books in the series I'm trying to figure out what it was that I liked about them on the first go round. I'm not really connecting with any of the characters and don't think that I'm going to go any further.
February 9, 2012
Liked Cruel and Unusual better than All that Remains. Read Cruel and Unusual in a day, great cliff hanger love the fact that Lucy is back and that it leaves you hanging. Luckily I have the next book so hopefully they will catch the bad guy.
Read
May 13, 2014I love all her books
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews