| Gaudy Night is a tale of intrigue within an intellectual setting. The crime is not actually a physical wrong committed against any number of people, but is more of an intellectual crime committed against an educational institutition.
The protagonist, Harriet Vane is asked to return to her alma mater Oxbridge, to solve the mystery of who might be doing the mechevious acts against certain Dons within the school. Vane herself has just recently been acquitted of murder against her old boyfriend who had been found dead of poisoning. Vane calls in her good friend Peter Wimsey to help her solve the mystery of the university. Wimsey is a world-renown sleuth who has political connections all over the continent. Through his many investigative tactics Wimsey is able to prove that the crime is against the intellectual women of the school and also against their integrity as scholastic members of society. The antagonist, due to the fact that her husband lost his tenure because of one of the Don's reports, has become bitter and evengeful. The plot of Gaudy Night is a highly sophisticated plot and is definately not for the reader who is looking for a easy and light-hearted read. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) Time/era of story: Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book descript. of violence and chases - 0 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 70 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10 % 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 Has special powers? Yes Ethnicity/Race Unusual characteristics: Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - 20's-30's Profession/status: Has special powers? Yes Eccentric: Yes Motive of antagonist - revenge How sensitive is this character? Intelligence - Average intelligence Setting Europe Yes Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment Explicit sex in book? Yes A lot of techno jargon? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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