Because Southern Cross departs widely from Cornwell's usual detective pattern, it is worth considering how and why. How does adding an element of satire to the traditional format change the detective genre and the reader's reaction to it? Certainly, where normally the narrative voice is distant or "transparent," the detectives are competent, and the suspect deserves investigation, in the satiric detective novel certainties and verities are missing. In this case, police actions are bungled; their complex computer systems are defeated by a well-meaning and ill-educated youth; and regional antagonisms dominate their responses. Cornwell emphasizes the clumsiness of her detectives, their preconceptions and prejudices, their difficulty adjusting to a new social environment, and the personal motives that affect their performance. At the same time she shows the humanity behind the "redneck" country-boy suspect: the superficial behavior and.....
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