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Southern Cross | 
 enlarge | Author: Patricia Cornwell
Publisher: Time Warner Paperbacks
Category: Book
List Price: £6.99
Buy Used: £0.01
You Save: £6.98 (100%)
New (26) Used (420) Collectible (5) from £0.01
Rating:  16 reviews
Sales Rank: 208249
Media: Paperback
Edition: New edition
Pages: 455
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7 x 4.3 x 1.2
ISBN: 0316846813
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780751527131
ASIN: 0751527130
Publication Date: December 2, 1999
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
With the phenomenal success of her Scarpetta books, Cornwell set herself something of a problem: how to strike off in new directions with different protagonists. It is good to report that the trio introduced so compellingly in Hornet's Nest, Police Chief Judy Hammer and colleagues Virginia West and Andy Brazil, make an assured return in this up-tempo sequel. The locale this time is Richmond, Virginia, and Cornwell quickly immerses us in the personal lives and politics of a big-city police force reeling from corruption and intrigue. Hammer is there to reduce the crime rate, but is still trying to come to terms with the death of her husband. And when a gang of juvenile killers starts creating havoc, she finds herself dealing with both public scrutiny and the resentments of her staff. While the characterisation and plotting (always Cornwell's strong suits) remain as razor sharp as ever, there is more emphasis on humour, making a piquant contrast to the high-octane action (although some might find the whimsical character names--Smudge, Muskrat, Weed, et al--a tad too Dickensian for this kind of urban thriller). Supremely entertaining stuff, and though some may yearn for the return of her doughty pathologist heroine, Cornwell has demonstrated that she is no one-trick pony. --Barry Forshaw
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| Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...
Black Humor October 6, 2007
M. A. Ramos (Florida USA)
From some of the other reviews it seems that some people just don't have a sense of humor. The book is not her usually writting, instead of a serious serial killer story, expect a dark comedy. She takes a pot shot at everybody and hits the nail on the head every time. The most important lesson to be learned from this book is that there are too many people out there hearing things that haven't been said and others who do not pay attention at all. The narrative gets a little disjointed at times. But the cast of characters are tied together in the end. On the serious side, there is a teenage gang leader and the kids he scares into the gang. One note: though very cute, I usually only like talking animals in fantasy novels.
 A light-hearted romp from a fine serious writer October 2, 2004
Helen Highwater (Reading, Berkshire)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I can't help feeling that the 1-star reviews have missed the point. This is very different from PC's Kay Scarpetta books; it's a light, frothy confection that she seems to have enjoyed writing as a change from the more sombre Scarpetta formula. It's almost as if Terry Pratchett had a go at writing a police procedural - there's teenage hooligans, brainless rednecks, and the priceless rebirth of Confederate president Jefferson Davis as a black basketball player. Great fun.
 Incoherent and shallow - so true November 10, 2003
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I am a fan of PC but this book is awful. I struggled to finish it in the hope it would get better. Do not waste your money on this!
Trading on past good stuff. Deserves less than 1 star!!! December 28, 2001
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I'm rarely moved to write my views, particularly negative ones, but here goes!I agree with the review headed "Incoherent and Shallow" I'm afraid. I've read all PC's books + enjoyed them greatly. However, this smacked of an author who's writing is more the result of contractual expectation (one-a-year please!) than a true application of talent. PC can be excused for trying out a new style, or environment, but not at the expense of her loyal following. This came across as the type of rejected first attempt you would expect to deservedly see in a publisher's 'NO' section. Absolute rubbish. Her publisher should be ashamed of themselves for trading on a good author's reputation! The plot was loose, jumpy, confusing, implausible and downright silly. The Chief of Police overhearing a CB conversation, later linked to a killing. The cigarette factory character and his problems. An uneducated, 14yr old latchkey kid causing mayhem with Police computers before throwing the town's upper crust into turmoil by daubing (if beautifully) a cemetary statue to look like his deceased brother. And the old, crippled tramp? He just finished me off when he climbed this huge wall to get into cemetary when incumbered by severe physical impediments. Hilarious! Unfortunately, PC clearly didn't mean it to be. Had this been the first of her books that I had read I would probably forget all about her, moving on to somebody else very quickly. The one plus point is that it's given me the push to finish my own half-written novel. It WILL be better than this one. It couldn't fail.
Incoherent and shallow December 14, 2001
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Ouch. As a longtime Cornwell fan I struggled with Southern Cross but this was just awful. It appeared like a bad first draft. The characters are cardboard, the dialogue is deeper on the Jerry Springer Show and the plot just silly. the net result is you just don't care after a while and it was a real stuggle to finish the book - one I wish I'd lost. It included gems such as a character being outlined as an non-drinking fitness fanatic in one scene, then having beers with their chat six pages later. Doesn't Patricia cornwell have a sub-editor, or at least read her stuff back to herself before publication? Apparently not...
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