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Dunne, March 2003, 23.95, 256 pp. ISBN 0312319584 After retiring from her job as a research professor at a California college, physicist Gloria Lamerino returns to her hometown of Revere, Massachusetts. In her late fifties, she met the love of her life homicide detective Matt Geneva and after a two-year courtship, she moves into his home. Matt undergoes a physical that reveals he suffers from prostrate cancer. Meanwhile Gloria, a police consultant, is forced to work with Matt's partner on a case that is very close to her heart. Her goddaughter M.C. Galigani, who left her teaching and research position in Houston, believes that her abusive ex-boyfriend Jake Powers is stalking her. Her former coworker Wayne Gallen is the one who shows up at her apartment warning of the danger she is in because of a misdirected email. When a private investigator posing as a student of M.C. is found murdered in Revere, Gloria really starts to worry. Between taking care of Matt and connecting the dots on an illegal medical experiment run by someone who doesn't hesitate to kill those who get in his way, Gloria is busier than when she worked two jobs on the Pacific coast. Two of the reasons Camille Minichino's mysteries are popular is that they are intelligent and believable. The heroine is a police consultant who handles herself in a professional manner, which gives her legitimacy to readers who appreciate some realism in their novels. Superb plotting, likeable characters and enough romance to appeal to fans of that genre turn THE CARBON MURDER into a fabulous crime thriller Harriet Klausner | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) How difficult to spot villain? - Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues Time/era of story: What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 60% Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book descript. of violence and chases - 10 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Is Romance a MAJOR (25%+) part of story? Yes Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 40's-50's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - money/treasure How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Northeast Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript |
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