| Daisy Sullivan hires private detective Kinsey Milhone to find out what became of her mother, Violet Sullivan. Thirty-four years ago, she left her house to enjoy a fireworks show on July 4 and was never seen again. Daisy, left with baby-sitter Liza Mellincamp, was just seven at the time.
In a departure from her usual style, author Grafton alternates first-person accounts by Kinsey with flashbacks describing the actions of various characters in the days before and just after Violet's disappearance. Thus, the reader has facts that are not available to Kinsey as she pursues her investigation. Liza worships Violet, and she stands up her best friend, Kathy Cramer to babysit that night. Kathy is the daughter of the local General Motors dealer, and owns one of the few television sets in Serena Station, CA, a poor working-class town. Violet took her Pomeranian, Baby, with her as she drove off in the brand-new Chevrolet coupe her husband bought her only the day before. Foley Sullivan frequently beat his wife, and had recently torn her lace curtains – one of the few pleasant features of their slummy house – off the walls. The car was widely believed to be a gift to try to keep her from running away. Kinsey interviews Kathy's father, Chet, who passes on the story of the car's purchase. In a flashback, we find that Chet is one of the many men who have slept with Violet. But the day after Foley buys her the car, she breaks off with Chet, who accuses her of simply trading sex for the car. Kathy is married to Chet's sales manager, Winston Smith. Back in 1953, he was a barely competent salesman. He was fired because he allowed Violet to test drive the Chevrolet alone. She ran up more than 200 miles before returning it. After Foley buys the car, Winston is rehired. In 1987, as Kinsey investigates Violet's disappearance, Foley is a handyman in a church, where he also lives. He has apparently given up drinking and violence, having learned his lesson when his wife left him. Another of Violet's lovers is Jake Ottweiler, the father of Tannie Ottweiler, Kinsey's friend who introduced her to Daisy and got her into this investigation. The affair took place while Tannie's mother was in the hospital, dying of cancer. Jake, lonely and depressed, is drawn into the affair. When, overcome by guilt, he breaks it off, Violet goes to Mary Hairl Ottweiler's parents and tells them about the affair. Then there's Tom Padgett, who has married a rich woman much older than him. He's building a construction business, but she won't put her money into the business. He's desperate, because the business won't survive without an infusion of cash. Complicating the investigation is the fact that Violet is widely believed to have taken some $50,000 out of her safe deposit box before she disappeared. This would have been her stash if she decided to start a new life somewhere else. It could also have been a motive for murder. Eventually, Kinsey finds the Chevrolet buried on the estate of Tannie's grandparents. A good deal of construction equipment was in the area, as a subdivision was going up nearby. Violet and her dog are dead inside the car. Having solved the mystery she was hired to solve, Kinsey must now try to find the murderer. | ||
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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% Misc. Murder Plotlets - solving long-past murder 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 - 20 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Male How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Average intelligence Setting United States Yes The US: - California Small town? Yes Small town people: - dumb rednecks, like Gomer Pyle Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths Explicit sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references Unusual forms of death - asphyxiation Unusual form of death? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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