| Pete Marino receives a phone call from someone calling himself, "Hog," who makes references to the unsolved death of a doctor and threats toward Kay's niece, Lucy.
Benton Wesley is analyzing a convicted, compulsive-killer who is a new patient in the psychiatric P.R.E.D.A.T.O.R. Program. The inmate mentions a south Florida woman killed 2 1/2 years ago in a Christmas store. Lucy begins to delve into the case and learns that a mother and daughter disappeared without a trace. Within the present-day business, a backroom reveals traces of blood. Another Florida family, two sisters and two boys, disappear and a concerned neighbor calls Kay because her reports to the police seem to be ignored. Before Kay and Pete can talk to her in person, she is killed in her home! When Kay Scarpetta, Benton, Pete, and Lucy piece together the common thread, they find the killer! | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) How difficult to spot villain? - Challenging Time/era of story: What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - nearly 100% Special suspect? - chronically deranged person Murder of certain profession? Misc. Murder Plotlets - "All in the family" murder - solving long-past murder - killer purposefully leaves puzzle clues - Big focus on forensic evidence Kind of investigator 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 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - 20's-30's Profession/status: Eccentric: Yes Motive of antagonist - insanity How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Northeast - Southeast Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - very gorey references to deaths/dead bodies and torture A lot of techno jargon? Yes Kind of jargon? - biology/medical Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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