Postmortem

Patricia Cornwell’s first novel, published in 1990, introduced Dr. Kay Scarpetta, chief medical examiner of Virginia, as a killer strangles women in their homes in Richmond. Scarpetta works from the forensic evidence the killer leaves behind while fending off hostile colleagues and a leak that threatens the case. Drawing on Cornwell’s own years in the state medical examiner’s office, it won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel and helped launch the forensic thriller.