| Jess Koster is a prosecutor with the state's attorney's office in Chicago. She has begun having panic attacks after a man, who almost definitely raped and beat her client, has threatened her and begun following her. Jess first began having panic attacks eight years ago when her mother disappeared. Her mother was never found. Shortly after Jess's mother's disappearance, Jess married her husband, now ex-husband, Don. Don helped her cope with her panic attacks and her life, but during the four years they were married, Jess became stifled and felt Don controlled too much. Now she had been living on her own for four years and doing okay until this man, Rick Ferguson, showed up in her life.
Jess meets a shoe salesman, Adam, during this time. He is charming and kind, but Jess realizes he is mysterious, such as not calling but just showing up at her apartment, and this makes her wonder about his intentions. Then Jess finds out someone has come into her apartment and ripped all of her underwear. Jess is sure that Rick did it -- she remembers that he worked for a locksmith and boasted that he could pick any lock, but Don has met Adam and thinks it could have been Adam who did it. Jess realizes she is not totally sure it wasn't Adam -- she remembers that he borrowed her key once when he went out to get groceries, and he could have gotten the key duplicated. Things are creepy for Jess as she is stressed out by Rick and his threats and she is not sure she can win her case against him; she is not sure whether she should continue to see Adam or put up with his behavior; she is not sure she will ever know what happened to her mother; and her ex-husband Don hovers around her, trying to help her with what is going on, while at the same time he is Rick's lawyer. | ||
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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 - 10 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20 % Crime Thriller Yes General Crime (including known murderer) Yes Who's the criminal enemy here? - rapist If story PRIMARILY about main chr. being hunted... - hunted by killer/stalker Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 20's-30's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - kicks How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Average intelligence Setting United States Yes The US: - Midwest City? Yes City: - Chicago Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths Explicit sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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