Books: BLOWN AWAY; BLOW FLY by PATRICIA CORNWELL (Little, Brown, pounds 17.99).

Byline: ANDREA HENRY on a confusing thriller

Last time legendary forensic pathologist Kay Scarpetta made an appearance, she just about escaped death at the hands of a mutant madman, had to scatter her boyfriend's ashes and, to cap it all, got booted out of her prestigious job. Life's been a bitch but, after a three-year absence, she's back.

In that time, she's gone from Babe Ruth to Little League in the career stakes, but she's still the best pathologist in town. Wherever there's the stench of death, you'll find Scarpetta sniffing around.

But the interesting thing about this latest adventure is that she's rarely the focus of attention. In a cast of what feels like thousands, she's only bagged a bit part.

Meet Nicole Robillard, a Louisiana cop, single mother and Scarpetta's biggest fan. Down in her Baton Rouge jurisdiction, women are being abducted and, while no bodies have yet turned up, there's no question a serial killer is on the loose.

Then there's Jay Talley. Cast your mind back a book or two and you'll recall that he and Scarpetta already know each other in a biblical sense, but since then his life has become an unholy mess. Working hand-in-hand with his FBI Most Wanted girlfriend - trailer trash Bev - Jay has been busy killing Scarpetta lookalikes. He enjoys nothing better than searching for the right words to describe his victims' emotions as they stare death in the face.

Jay's murdering brother, Jean-Baptiste Chandonne, is banged up on death row with the clock ticking, but the star of the last Scarpetta novel is still fixated with our heroine. And, before he dies, Chandonne wants to get a few things off his hairy chest. In return for spilling the beans on an old murder and dishing the dirt on his crime cartel family, all he asks is that Scarpetta administer his lethal injection.

Add to the mix rough ex-cop Peter Marino - who worships the ground Scarpetta walks on and knows a thing or two about the Chandonnes - and his crooked son Rocco who happens to be Jean-Baptiste's lawyer.

Then there's Kay's niece Lucy, an ex-FBI agent turned private investigator who's not afraid to fall foul of the law. Throw in Kay's dead lover and it's a bit of a free for all. Just one person is in complete control. And it's not Kay Scarpetta.

You need to be something of a KS anorak to get the best out of this book. Even then, the dialogue is sometimes so cryptic and the web-weaving so dense, that there's a chance even Cornwell herself doesn't know what's going on.

The good news is that with each outing, Scarpetta becomes more human. Co-existing with the steely, meticulous professional, there's a fragile woman with needs and disappointments. Feeling sympathy for our heroine can only be a good thing.

By the way, a blow fly feeds on dead bodies - so you're also in for a fair amount of Scarpetta's bloody forte. Brace yourself.

CAPTION(S):

MYSTERY: Patricia Cornwell throws everything into the confusing mix of her new book