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Book Review By Tracey Ray
Nighttime Is My Time by Mary Higgins Clark

Jean Sheridan is going to a twenty year reunion of alumni at Stonecroft Academy. Here, she is to be honored along with six other members of her class. There is a sadness looming over the honorees as they have a memorial service for an old friend and classmate that drowned in her pool days before. Allison made the fifth woman in the class to die a mysterious death.

"The Owl" is at this reunion as an honoree and a killer. He has murdered all those women and more, and leaves a small pewter owl near the scene. He was always a dopey, nerd of a kid who was picked on and laughed at during his school years. He intends to exact his revenge. He started twenty years ago and his grande finale will be finished by reunions end. He toys with Jean, though, by threatening the daughter she gave up years ago that no one is supposed to know about.

He kidnaps Laura, an honoree, and makes it seem as though she is the one threatening Jean's daughter. He uses this ploy to lure Jean to her intended death. It is here, all the secrets of the past are revealed as well as a kink in "The Owl's" plans. He wants to kill Laura and Jean before he is exposed.


Plot & Themes
Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
How difficult to spot villain? - Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story:
What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 50%
Special suspect? - chronically deranged person
Murder of certain profession?
Misc. Murder Plotlets - cooped up in spooky house - solving long-past murder - Killer purposely leaves clues
Kind of investigator
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
descript. of violence and chases - 20 %
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40 %
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30 %
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10 %
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status:
Age: - 20's-30's
Ethnicity/Race
Unusual characteristics:

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 20's-30's
Profession/status:
Eccentric: Yes
Motive of antagonist - revenge
How sensitive is this character?
Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - Northeast

Writing Style
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths
Unusual forms of death - asphyxiation
Unusual form of death? Yes
Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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