| Jessica Rayder is a retired investment broker who's first love has always been horses. She and her childhood best friend, Faith Angelo, have spent years building a classy equestrian center and wooing the well-heeled horse people of western Connecticut. When a series of financial disasters threaten the future of Easton Ridge, Faith falls back into the alcoholic haze from which Jess had rescued her years before, and Jess struggles to keep things afloat while dealing with her own suddenly perilous health. When the landlord demands full payment of back rent, Jess and Faith face the unavoidable: they will lose the farm.
Zada Mahfood, a wealthy Muslim woman, and her beautiful daughter, Dania arrive. Riding lessons, an expensive horse, cash for everything--Jess's optimism grows. Drawing on her background of “playing the stock market,” and her finely-tuned skill at poker, Jess takes the down-payment money for Dania's new horse and heads for the Indian casino to participate in a private game with foreign royalty. Dania's father, Samir Mahfood, offers his nephews to help at the barn, and Jess gladly accepts. When the FBI shows up on her doorstep, she learns the folly of her distraction: Samir and the barn workers are suspected terrorists. Jess calls her new friend, Howard, a criminal lawyer now retired to Idaho. He arrives the next morning and counsels both women through a series of frightening interviews with the FBI agents. A plan is devised to trap all three men at the same time at an upcoming horse show at the farm. On show day, unbeknownst to Jess and Faith, the FBI has changed its plan, and the terrorists drive away, leaving the women drained and angry at having been pawns in a deadly game. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) Time/era of story: Spying/Terrorism Thriller Yes Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book descript. of violence and chases - 20 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 50 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10 % Who's the terrorist enemy here? Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - revenge The antagonists are: - Arab terrorists How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor Intelligence - Very much smarter than other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Northeast Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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