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Description
Richmond Virginia's medical examiner Kay Scarpetta fears the worst when a serial killer leaves a trail of gruesome stranglings that has paralyzed the city.
Quick Summary
Patricia Cornwell's "Postmortem" introduced readers to Kay Scarpetta, a tough and brilliant medical examiner who has to catch a serial killer that's terrorizing Richmond, Virginia, and it's one of those books that basically invented the whole forensic crime genre we see everywhere now. If your kid loves crime shows like "CSI" or any of those shows where smart people solve creepy cases by studying dead bodies, this is right up their alley, and Scarpetta herself is a genuinely memorable character a woman who refuses to let anyone push her around while she's trying to figure out who's strangling people in her city. The writing pulls you into the investigation without feeling too textbook-ish, even though there's plenty of realistic detail about how autopsies work and how detectives piece together clues. That said, this isn't for the faint of heart it gets pretty graphic with the crime scenes and the descriptions of what happens to bodies, so it's best for older teens who can handle scary content without getting nightmares. It's the kind of thriller that makes you appreciate how smart investigators have to be while also wanting to sleep with the lights on, which honestly makes it perfect for kids who want something that feels grown-up and genuinely thrilling. Fans of this should check out the other Kay Scarpetta books, but "Postmortem" works perfectly as a standalone, and it'll definitely make you think twice about what goes on behind the scenes at a medical examiner's office.