Conflicts & Convicts (Hornet's Nest - Patricia Cornwell)

Member Name: Javelina

Product:	Hornet's Nest - Patricia Cornwell
Date:	04/05/02 (220 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Captivating, interesting, Suspenseful

Disadvantages: Too many character conflicts, Some very inrealistic sections

Hornet?s Nest is yet another one of Patricia Cornwell?s wonderfully written crime fiction mysteries. This book is from a few years ago, published in 1996, and has a sequel, Southern Cross.

The title of this book comes from what is the official seal of the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as being the seal of the police department. We are first introduced to Deputy Chief Virginia West, who is experiencing the stresses of being forced to protect the reputation of the police department, as the police chief requests her to bring a reporter along on assignment.

Andy Brazil fills the role of the unwanted reporter who tags along with the police force to gain insight into their world, his experiences written for the public to read. His character is quite developed even before he meets Deputy Chief West, who is rather unkind to him. Brazil has worked quite extensively as a student and journalist, and anticipates working as part of the police force, and not only as a reporter, but eventually as an officer himself.

Brazil?s assignment with West does not fare very well for either of them, and they become quite spiteful towards one another, and this was often, in a sense, painful to read. The characters seemed to be so incredibly set in their ways that as a reader, I wanted to help them, change them. However, as the story progresses, Brazil gains some knowledge about West, as she does about him. The two begin to get along much more harmoniously, and West assumes a role more of taking Brazil under her wing, teaching him how to shoot and spending unnecessary time with him.

Hornet?s Nest progresses as a complicated tangle of mysteries, the question being, where do these mysteries lead? Chief West is concerned about having to deal with Brazil, the general public, and about a string of brutal homicides that are taking place. Brazil, on the other hand, deals with his alcoholic mother, lack of money, prank phone calls, harassment from o
fficemates, and his own feelings. The biggest mystery being dealt with in Hornet?s Nest is that of trying to capture the criminals who are committing murders that are plaguing the city.

The great thing about Hornet?s Nest which is commonly a part of Cornwell?s other books, is two plots running simultaneously. As usual, I wonder why the reader is being led into what seems like a completely different plot line, but from past experiences reading this author?s book, I always know that the connections will come together in due time.

The other great thing about Cornwell?s writing, and at least of Hornet?s Nest is that it truly gets you involved. I felt for the characters, and the twists and turns in the plots managed to even evoke strong yet conflicted feelings about the two main characters, West and Brazil. Did I want them to hate each other? Did I want them to pursue a relationship? Both personalities were so vivid that I experienced annoyances and then compassion towards these fictitious people. This author writes in such a way that I almost could see the events of the story unfolding, such as in one ?scene? where Brazil inadvertently pops the trunk of the police car, causing a variety of police property to be thrown out onto the road, ending a pursuit of a suspect.

There were some downsides to Hornet?s Nest. Most of the characters were irritable and unhappy almost continuously, and as I alluded to before, it makes for a great deal of tension (and not just between West and Brazil). It was difficult and almost painful at times to constantly sense this bitterness in the characters, and the conflicts that they dealt with in their own lives. So much time was spent on them trying to deal with their own issues. I became especially frustrated at the end of the book when a character (who I won?t reveal) disappears, and much time is invested trying to accommodate their childish behavior.

Another more ridiculous aspect of this book was ?Ni
les?, who tried to solve the mystery. No, Niles is not a person, but a cat. He happened to be familiar with history dating back to ancient Egypt as associated with modern society, and was able to draw educated conclusions about the outside world. This turns into a ?Meow-mix-esque? tirade in which Niles tries to speak to his owner through some yowling. He essentially solves the mystery, even having never stepped foot (or should I say paw), outside.

Towards the end of the book, the plot twists, leading the reader in a new direction. At just about all points in the book, you are hanging onto threads of information- you know they are important, you know they lead somewhere. It?s just enough to be frustrating, which has me clutching this book until the wee hours of the morning instead of getting an appropriate amount of sleep. First, I feel as though the mystery is filled with such vague information that I just want to throw the book down in frustration. But then there is one little grabbing detail after another, plot twists that keep the reader wanting to read the supposed ?few more pages?.

The plot in Hornet?s Nest ends quite abruptly with the end of the book, so abruptly that I found myself going back to read the last two pages over. This seems to be somewhat of Cornwell?s characteristic writing style. I almost felt as though the story needed more, but then I realized that I would rather let the ending progress in my mind rather than in the book, for it is left for the reader to draw conclusions and whatnot.

As a side note, one of the most interesting things that I learned from Hornet?s Nest is what is called ?jailing?. This refers to wearing pants so that they have almost fallen down. But the interesting thing is where this habit is derived from- inmates, who are of course not permitted to wear belts while incarcerated. Cornwell?s broad background in so much of the criminology field really gives you a sense of reality while reading her b
ooks.

I find all of Cornwell?s books captivating and time well spent in reading them. Hornet?s Nest was another stellar example of her creative and fascinating, almost entrancing books, although it was unique from many of her other stories.

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