River Oak, 2004, 381 pp. ISBN: 1589190211 In the middle of the night Cincinnati private investigator Joe Box receives call from a frantic Little Bit, who says someone is trying to kill the survivors of their Nam platoon. Joe is shocked to hear from a guy he had not spoken with in three decades while also trying to calm the guy down saying it is nonsense. Joe hangs up, but the next day Little Bit's wife calls saying he was electrocuted. Joe is stunned because he knew how afraid of electricity Little Bit was. Joe thinks that too much coincidence is involved as Little Bit had mentioned two other deaths in the last two weeks. With the help of librarian Mrs. Brake, he learns that three other members of his platoon of ten are also dead. As he flashbacks to his time in Nam, he wonders how to stop a killing machine who has made each death seem like suicide or accident before this invincible killer murders he or the other survivors. This is a thriller that modernizes Christie's AND THEN THERE WAS NONE by using a Nam platoon as the victims thirty years after they completed their tour of duty. Joe is an intriguing private sleuth who has found strength in God which has given him a reason to live. His supportive girlfriend Angela Swain helps, but the tale belongs to the cat and mouse game and the insightful flashbacks to a search mission to kill Charlie the sniper. Harriet Klausner | ||
Plot & Themes Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) How difficult to spot villain? - Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues Time/era of story: Murder of certain profession? Kind of investigator 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 - 40 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Age: - 40's-50's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - revenge How sensitive is this character? Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Midwest Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript |