| ICED
Henry Holt, Jan 2001, 24.00, 246 pp. ISBN: 0805064389 After spending eighteen months in a New Mexico State penitentiary, twenty-nine years old Meg Gardner returns to her home in Missoula, Montana. Meg hopes to forge a relationship with her estranged parents, but fails to achieve her goal. Instead, Meg rents a small home and works as a repo person, taking possession of cars from individuals who default on their payments. Her current job is to repossess Clay Bennett's Cherokee Jeep since the debtor is dead. Inside the vehicle, Meg notices a locked briefcase. Meg begins to open the briefcase, but has to stop when Ivan and his thugs demand she hand it over even to the point of using force. A woman comes by asking about the briefcase and Meg informs her that Ivan holds it. Next the police chief questions Meg. She learns that the deceased crashed a plane years ago and has been searching for it ever since. Soon someone threatens Meg's boyfriend and a buddy of Clay is dead. Meg has no idea what is going on, but if she is to remain alive, she better find out soon. Jenny Siller has a lyrical style that allows readers to use their senses to vividly understand the local terrain and climate (wear a scarf it is cold up north). Through a series of flashbacks, the audience learns about the scandal surrounding Meg's parents, why she did hard time, and what she did before returning to Montana. The mystery is cleverly devised leading to a richly textured book that has several interesting levels for fans to discern. Harriet Klausner | ||
|
Plot & Themes Tone of story - How difficult to spot villain? - Somewhat obvious Time/era of story: Spying/Terrorism Thriller Yes Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Crime Thriller Yes Crime plotlets: General Crime (including known murderer) Yes Search for technology? Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Average intelligence Setting United States Yes City? Yes City: - Dirty, dangerous (like New York) Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript |
||