By Patricia Cornwell
Why can't Cornwell stay in the morgue? Her latest foray, the third in her Andy Brazil series, is another misguided attempt to marry oddball humor with a Kay Scarpetta-style murder mystery. In Isle, Brazil has expanded his duties as a Virginia state cop to include writing a Web column under the pseudonym Trooper Truth. His goal: "to put criminal behavior into the context of human nature and history." Right. Apart from slowing down the narrative, his essays—injected between chapters—are unbearably dull. Never mind that Brazil's energies might be better spent tracking down the brutal killer who calls herself Unique First or even riding herd on the state's loopy governor, whose plan for helicopter-monitored speed traps very nearly sparks a Virginia civil war. Cornwell being Cornwell, the book is a decent thriller (with a Scarpetta cameo!). But as dark comedy, it commits the worst offense of all: It ain't funny. (Putnam, $26.95)
Bottom Line: Cast away
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