From Potter's Field

From Potter's Field is a crime novel by American writer Patricia Cornwell, published in 1995. It is the sixth book in the series featuring Dr. Kay Scarpetta, a chief medical examiner, and belongs to the forensic thriller line that Cornwell developed through the 1990s.

The story opens on Christmas Eve, when the killer Temple Gault strikes again: a naked, apparently homeless woman is shot dead in Central Park, in New York. Scarpetta, serving as the FBI's consulting pathologist, is called to the case. Soon after, a transit officer is found shot in a subway tunnel, and back in Richmond, Virginia, the body of a corrupt local sheriff arrives at Scarpetta's morgue, delivered by Gault himself. The narrative mixes meticulous scientific work, such as an identification drawn from dental records, with the personal conflicts of the characters, including Scarpetta's relationship with her niece Lucy and with her colleagues.

The climax moves into the New York City Subway, in a spectacular and technically intricate finale that critics often single out as one of the most debated parts of the book. The novel was a commercial success and helped establish Cornwell as one of the most widely read authors of forensic fiction, although her style and technical detail have drawn mixed reactions from reviewers.