| The Ellisons were a well-bred, proper Victorian family living in a respectable neighborhood. Then the killings began. Someone was stalking young women, high- and low-born alike, and garroting them. As neighbor began to suspect neighbor, carefully cultivated facades started to slip, revealing the human frailties beneath. The crimes of the Cater Street Hangman stripped bare the strict social conventions that ordered the Ellisons' world and exposed Victorian hypocrisies for all to see.
As her world crumbled around her, Charlotte Ellison found an unexpected ally. At first, Inspector Thomas Pitt, the policeman who constantly questioned her family while investigating the crimes, annoyed and disturbed her. But she soon came to rely on his honesty and compassion as she navigated a world turned newly strange and frightening. After tragedy struck the Ellison family, Charlotte's feelings for Pitt matured into love. Together, the inspector and the society girl faced the monstrous murderer who had shattered the neighborhood's peace. | ||
|
Plot & Themes Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) How difficult to spot villain? - Moderately Challenging Time/era of story: What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 40% Special suspect? - chronically deranged person Misc. Murder Plotlets - butler provides unemotional service Kind of investigator Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Any non-mystery subplot? descript. of violence and chases - 10 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 10 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 50 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 30 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Is Romance a MAJOR (25%+) part of story? Yes Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - insanity How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor Intelligence - Average intelligence Setting Europe Yes European country: - England/UK City? Yes City: - London Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths Explicit sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references Unusual form of death? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
||