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Author - Patricia Cornwell
Cornwell had a theory as to the identity of Jack the Ripper.

Author - Patricia Cornwell

Patricia Cornwell’s crime novels mix forensic detail with tense plotting. This quiz explores her Scarpetta series, characters and themes for keen mystery and thriller fans.

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Fascinating Fact:

Her debut Scarpetta novel Postmortem (1990) won major crime awards in Britain, France and the United States in the same year.

In Specialist Books, this quiz looks at crime writer Patricia Cornwell. You will explore her Kay Scarpetta novels, their forensic style, and how her work shaped modern crime fiction.

  • Forensic crime fiction: Crime stories that focus on scientific evidence, autopsies and lab work to help solve cases.
  • Kay Scarpetta: Patricia Cornwell’s fictional medical examiner who investigates murders using forensic science.
  • Medical examiner: A doctor who examines bodies, records causes of death and gives expert evidence in criminal cases.
Who is Patricia Cornwell in crime fiction?

Patricia Cornwell is an American crime writer best known for her Kay Scarpetta novels. Her books use detailed forensic science to solve murders and helped popularise modern forensic thrillers.

What is the best order to read the Kay Scarpetta books?

Many readers start with Postmortem, the first Scarpetta novel, then follow publication order. Reading in order lets you watch characters and relationships develop over time.

What themes appear in Patricia Cornwell’s Scarpetta series?

The Scarpetta books explore justice, the impact of violent crime, advances in forensic science, ethical questions in law enforcement and the pressures on people who investigate murders.

1 .
Cornwell is a descendant of which 19th century American writer?
Stephen Crane
Henry James
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Mark Twain
Stowe was the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin
2 .
Cornwell was born in 1956 in which city in Florida?
Everglades City
Fort Lauderdale
Miami
Tallahassee
Patricia's father was one of the leading lawyers in the United States at the time
3 .
Which 1990 novel introduced Cornwell's best-known character Dr Kay Scarpetta?
Autopsy
Biopsy
Morgue
Postmortem
Postmortem was Cornwell's first novel and it won the 1991 Edgar Award for Best First Novel
4 .
What is the name of the big cop who has a close relationship with Scarpetta?
Pete Marengo
Pete Marino
Pete Morello
Pete Morgano
Marino is a detective sergeant in the Richmond Police Department
5 .
Scarpetta is Chief Medical Examiner in which US state?
Maryland
Massachusetts
New Jersey
Virginia
She operates in Richmond, the state capital
6 .
What is the name of the police officer Cornwell introduced in her 1997 novel Hornet's Nest?
Andy Brabazon
Andy Braga
Andy Braganza
Andy Brazil
Brazil is a state trooper who works alongside Judy Hammer, the superintendent of Virginia State Police
7 .
Cornwell's controversial 2002 book Portrait of a Killer presented her theory about which murderer?
The Boston Strangler
Jack the Ripper
Son of Sam
The Yorkshire Ripper
Her theory was that the killer was the English painter Walter Sickert
8 .
In 1993, Cornwell received a 28 day sentence for drunk driving after an evening out with which actress?
Jodie Foster
Demi Moore
Meg Ryan
Meryl Streep
Demi Moore was possibly going to star as Dr Kay Scarpetta, the heroine of Cornwell's novels, in a film
9 .
What was Cornwell's surname at birth?
Daniels
Danton
Danvers
Davies
She married one of her English professors, Charles L Cornwell, in 1980
10 .
What is the title of the second novel in the Kay Scarpetta series, published in 1991?
Body of Evidence
Circumstantial Evidence
Inadmissable Evidence
No Evidence
There have been many novels in the Kay Scarpetta series

 

Author:  Tony Rennick (Art and Literature Critic)

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