A series of decapitations brings Chief Medical Examiner Kay Scarpetta to Dublin, where she is to consult on the cases. The cases envelop Kay, and soon an ominous stranger with information only the killer could possibly know begins contacting her over the internet with the screen name deadoc. When the killer goes so far as to e-mail her photos of the murder victim, Kay goes on a virtual tour of the photo with the help of her niece, Lucy. But the torso killer is no longer foremost on Kay's mind, as she soon discovers that the bodies of the more recent victims have been infected with a deadly smallpox-like virus... | ||
Plot & Themes Tone of story - Time/era of story: Medical Thriller Yes Medical Plotlets: Spying/Terrorism Thriller Yes Cloak & Dagger Plotlets: Kid or adult book? - - Adult or Young Adult Book Crime Thriller Yes General Crime (including known murderer) Yes Who's the criminal enemy here? - finding a known killer Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 40's-50's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - revenge How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Very much smarter than other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Northeast - Mid-Atlantic states Island? Yes Island: - Atlantic Ocean Island Misc setting - scientific labs Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - very gorey descriptions deaths/dead bodies Explicit sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references A lot of techno jargon? Yes Kind of jargon? - biology/medical Unusual forms of death - biohazard/virus Unusual form of death? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |