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Meisha Merlin, August 2005, 23.95, 304 pp. ISBN 1592220061 He finds himself in a parking garage not knowing who he is but certain that someone murdered him. It takes him a while to realize that he is Detective Cole Donovan of the San Francisco Police Department working on an arson and burglary case. He realizes he is a ghost when nobody sees or hears him and by his ability to walk through walls and doors. He was meeting an informant Sara Benay and he hoped that she had enough information to take the owner of Flaxx Enterprises Donald Flaxx down because in one of his stores that was torched a foreman died, making him an accessory to murder. His informant Sara has disappeared and since his body has not been found the police think they ran off together. Cole wants his wife to know the truth about the meetings with Sara, not what the police think. Using his ghostly powers, he convinces his former partner Razor, once he gets over the shock of seeing Cole as a ghost, to help him find out why he was killed, who murdered him and how it relates to Flaxx Enterprises. Even when Cole discovers who the killer is, Razor has no way of obtaining a warrant because he can't explain how he came by the knowledge. Harriet Klausner | ||
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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? - 80% 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 - 50 % 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 - Male Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - 20's-30's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - insanity The antagonists are: - big business leader(s) How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - California Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript |
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