Kay Scarpetta is back. For all of you who have read Point of Origin, you may guess in which state you can find her.

For all others, i can't tell you why, but Kay Scarpetta is a shadow of herself, working herself to exhaustion, people treating her like a baby, very cautious around her.

Pete Marino and Lucy, Kay's niece, are not in better shape but Kay seems to be the one who suffers the most.

A lot of changes have happened. Marino has be demoted due to the arrival of a new chief of police who wants to draw blood and wants Kay out of the picture as well.

The Port of Richmond. A call tells Kay that a body has been found on a cargo. On one of the boxes in the cargo is written the enigmatic "Bon voyage, le loup-garou". The postmortem is done, but no real reason to how he died is found. Animal hair is found all over his body, fresh water and seawater atoms are found on him which makes it even more difficult to determine to the cause of death. However he apparently died by drowning.

The day before the body was found, a friend of Kay's came to see her and gives her a letter. The person who wrote it asks her t ge Marino and Lucy for diner that night.

She asks Marino to come for diner but can't ask Lucy who is undercover in Miami. However, that night Lucy and her new girlfriend appear on the doorstep to Kay's astonishment.

They fought and the separation is not a nice one.

A few days later, Kim Luong, a cashier in a grocery store in Cary town, is found ead, beaten up to pulp.

The first body being from Europe, Marino contacts Interpol to find if there's a connection. After the second death, they contact Interpol again, as the same animal hair is found on her.

Meanwhile, at the medical examiners office a lot of thefts happen. Most of the employees think it's an insider who is stealing everything. Kay learns also that someone is impersonating her on the internet and that embarrasses politicians in Richmond. She also learns that calls from families have sent to some of her colleagues and that she was the one asking her secretary to do so.

The new chief of police, Diane Bray and her new detective, Anderson are going after Marino and Scarpetta for some reason. This adds complication to a sitation which is already not simple.

The rest is for you to uncover, guys and gals.

By now, you should know, that Patricia Cornwell is probably my favorite author. First, because everytime i read one of her novels I travel along Scarpetta in Richmond, knowing the city so well and it's funny to see where she goes, especially when i know the places : ). Second, because it's not just a crime novel, people with lives are involved, so that they grow old with you or you grow old with them. Third, because every novel is totally different.

It took me less than two days to read it, so that can give you a hint how much i liked that book : )

I also like to see Kay coming back to life again, but to understand this, you'll have to read the novel.

I do have one advice though. If you start any of the Scarpetta novels, try to start with the first one, because Kay and the other characters did evolve and you need to see the chronology but you could start with this one though you will certainly miss a lot by not having read at least point of Origin.

Go buy it, now!!!!!!