Patricia Cornwell Books

Patricia Cornwell books (the Scarpetta Series) center around a medical examiner named Kay Scarpetta. Cornwell has patterned this character after herself in many ways. Both Scarpetta and Cornwell had difficult relationships with their deceased fathers, they are both divorced and they were both born in Miami.

Sam Daniels, Patricia’s father, served as a law clerk to Justice Hugo Black of the Supreme Court. Cornwell expresses that she was the victim of emotional abuse at the hands of her father and that is the motivation she needed to propel her into her career. Following is a quote that Patricia Cornwell made to the New and Views from the Times and Sunday Times regarding her father’s death:

He was on his deathbed. We knew it was the last time we’d see each other; he grabbed my brother's hand and mouthed 'I love you,' but he never touched me. All he did was write on a legal pad 'How's work?

In 1961, Patricia and her siblings were placed in foster care due to her mother’s hospitalization for depression. Her teen years were no less trying. She suffered from depression and anorexia. But, it was Ruth Bell, Billy Graham’s wife, who encouraged Cornwell’s writing career.

Patricia Cornwell met her husband, Charles Cornwell, at Davidson College where she graduated with a B.A. in English. Mr. Cornwell, who was 17 years older than Patricia, was her English professor. Professor Cornwell ended his career as a teacher and began a new career as a preacher.

The Charlotte-Observer got the benefit of Patricia’s writing when she started there in 1979. Her job responsibility included covering crime stories. Then, in 1984, she landed an office job for the Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Her job duties at the medical examiner’s office included a computer analyst and a technical writer. In 1989, Professor Cornwell and Patricia divorced.

After a rocky start that included three novels rejected for publication, 1991 was a turnkey year for Patricia Cornwell. Her first book in the famous Scarpetta series, Postmortem, was a major success. Then, a drunk driving charge landed Cornwell in a 28 day treatment center after she crashed her Mercedes following a dinner date with Demi Moore, who was interested in playing Scarpetta in a film.

Patricia Cornwell also suffers from bipolar disorder. She told The Times in her interview that she was “wired differently”. Her 2005 book, Predator, came after her extensive study of the criminal brain that eventually led to her reversal in support of the death penalty. Patricia concluded from her research that a person is not chemically destined to be a psychopath.

She is also no stranger to the famous. Among her close friends she lists George Bush, Sr. and Billy Graham. Patricia spent several weeks at Kennebunkport with Mr. Bush and his family and she was also a supporter of young George Bush. She was a family friend with Billy Graham since her childhood and often spoke on the Don Imus radio show in Mr. Graham’s place.

Patricia’s sexual preferences became clear when she started an affair with Margo Bennett. Margo was the wife of undercover agent Eugene “Gene” Bennett and she and Cornwell met at Quantico in June, 1991, when Patricia was doing research for her Scarpetta book series. In 1996, Gene found out about the affair and was arrested and charged with attempted murder of Margo. Patricia Cornwell eventually married her lesbian partner, Staci Ann Gruber in Massachusetts.