Patricia Cornwell: Point of Origin

This tale opens with the complete destruction by fire of a Virginia horse farm, the owner of which was said to be in London. Scarpetta joins the investigation on site and discovers some remains of a young woman in the master bath. Although the origin of the fire remains a mystery, research turns up two similar unsolved incidents from years earlier, female victims who were dead before the accompanying conflagration. 440 pages. Warner Books 1999. Paperback.