Sharp Force
On sale
7th October 2025
Price: £29.99
Genre
SCARPETTA, A BRAND NEW ORIGINAL SERIES, IS NOW ON PRIME VIDEO
NO ONE IS SAFE FROM THE SERIAL KILLER. NOT EVEN SCARPETTA…
During the early hours of Christmas morning, chief medical examiner Dr Kay Scarpetta receives a chilling call. The Phantom Slasher has struck again.
The serial killer has terrorized Northern Virginia for months. His pattern is to stalk with a sophisticated technology that enables him to invade his victims’ homes and watch their every move. They wake up to a ghost-like hologram before being murdered in their beds.
Scarpetta is summoned to Mercy Island, the site of a notorious psychiatric hospital where two people have been brutalized, one of them from Scarpetta’s past. It soon becomes apparent that she could be next . . .
DON’T MISS TRUE CRIME, PATRICIA CORNWELL’S JAW-DROPPING MEMOIR – AVAILABLE NOW
‘In Sharp Force Cornwell is at the very top of her game and Scarpetta is as finely wrought as ever. The research is impeccable as always . . . You are in the hands of a master storyteller. Sit back and prepare to be thrilled’ DAVID BALDACCI
‘Compelling, grisly and dark, another incredible thriller’ THE SUN
‘This is vintage Cornwell’ THE FINANCIAL TIMES
‘Masterfully plotted and utterly addictive’ WOMAN’S OWN
NO ONE IS SAFE FROM THE SERIAL KILLER. NOT EVEN SCARPETTA…
During the early hours of Christmas morning, chief medical examiner Dr Kay Scarpetta receives a chilling call. The Phantom Slasher has struck again.
The serial killer has terrorized Northern Virginia for months. His pattern is to stalk with a sophisticated technology that enables him to invade his victims’ homes and watch their every move. They wake up to a ghost-like hologram before being murdered in their beds.
Scarpetta is summoned to Mercy Island, the site of a notorious psychiatric hospital where two people have been brutalized, one of them from Scarpetta’s past. It soon becomes apparent that she could be next . . .
DON’T MISS TRUE CRIME, PATRICIA CORNWELL’S JAW-DROPPING MEMOIR – AVAILABLE NOW
‘In Sharp Force Cornwell is at the very top of her game and Scarpetta is as finely wrought as ever. The research is impeccable as always . . . You are in the hands of a master storyteller. Sit back and prepare to be thrilled’ DAVID BALDACCI
‘Compelling, grisly and dark, another incredible thriller’ THE SUN
‘This is vintage Cornwell’ THE FINANCIAL TIMES
‘Masterfully plotted and utterly addictive’ WOMAN’S OWN
Reviews
Slick, ghoulish, and a reliable stocking-filler for crime fiction lovers
Expert pacing and psychologically nuanced and complex characters
The queen of the forensic thriller
A masterfully plotted and utterly addictive crime thriller
The top gun in this field
Cornwell brings her forensic hero into chillingly modern territory
The Agatha Christie of the DNA age
In Sharp Force Cornwell is at the very top of her game and Scarpetta is as finely wrought as ever. The research is as impeccable as always . . . You are in the hands of a master storyteller. Sit back and prepare to be thrilled
Cornwell really is in a league of her own
Astonishing . . . Thirty years on, there's still no other crime writer like her
With Cornwell's signature forensic detail and intense pacing, this latest instalment is a must read
A brisk, kaleidoscopic thriller
Sinister, surprising and utterly unputdownable. Cornwell at her brilliant best
This is vintage Cornwell
A chilling, thrilling, macabre masterpiece. Unnatural Death is Patricia Cornwell at her mesmerising finest. The best just got better
PRAISE FOR PATRICIA CORNWELL
Forget the pretenders. Cornwell reigns
One of the best crime writers writing today
Slick, fast-paced and brilliant
One of the best crime writers writing today
One of the all-time greats of this genre
Classic Cornwell with an up-to-the-minute twenty-first-century plot - an intoxicating blend that proves Scarpetta is still queen of the autopsy and Cornwell is still queen of crime fiction. An utterly thrilling roller coaster ride
Sharp Force immerses readers in a masterfully researched investigation packed with twists, rich forensic detail and unforgettable tension. Perfect for both loyal Cornwell fans and newcomers
America's most stimulating and chilling writer of crime fiction
PRAISE FOR PATRICIA CORNWELL
Cutting-edge
An especially good entry in the series
The top gun in this field
PRAISE FOR UNNATURAL DEATH
A pioneer of the genre of forensic psychological thriller
When it comes to forensic sciences, nobody can touch Cornwell
Intense and gripping . . . Brilliant, scary storytelling
The Agatha Christie of the DNA age
The queen of the forensic thriller
Thirty years on, there's still no other crime writer like her
Compelling, grisly and dark, another incredible thriller
America's most stimulating and chilling writer of crime fiction
Cornwell's forensic detail and relentless pacing explain her worldwide success . . . Sharp Force is tense and tightly written, and sure to grip both long-time Scarpetta fans and new readers alike
Forget the pretenders. Cornwell reigns
