| Rozat “Rusty” Sabich is chief deputy prosecutor for Kindle County, his boss Raymond Horgan is up for re-election, and his associate beautiful Carolyn Polhemus has been brutally raped and murdered in her apartment. Life for Rusty gets very complicated. Carolyn was a divorced, absentee mother with a very promiscuous lifestyle. The upcoming election will determine if Rusty will have a job; if Horgan wins he stays, if he loses he's done. Rusty's affair with Carolyn ended several months earlier when she dumped him.
Rusty is handling the investigation of the murder despite the conflict of interest no one else knows. Dan “Lip” Lipramzer is investigating the details and evidence for Rusty. Convicted sex offenders, those Carolyn helped to prosecute, are initially suspect. Rusty learns Horgan had a brief relationship with Carolyn. Meanwhile Rusty's marriage is in a shambles as his wife Barbara knows about the affair. As evidence surfaces that implicates Rusty he is indicted for the killing. For his defense, he hires lawyer Alejandro “Sandy” Stern an Argentinean who has been a frequent opponent over the years. The prosecution is led by Nico Della “Delay” Guardia, who has now defeated Horgan for the position of Prosecuting Attorney (PA), and Tommy Molto. The evidence against Rusty is serious; calls made from his home to hers on the night of the murder, a bar glass with his fingerprints on it, carpet fibers found at her home, etc. The courtroom drama that ensues takes many turns for and against him. Expert forensic testimony is proven unreliable. Rusty learns the judge had a relationship with the deceased and that the judge, Carolyn, and Horgan all took bribes from suspects. A crucial piece of evidence for the prosecution goes missing. The judge dismisses the case on lack of evidence before it goes to the jury for deliberation. Rusty is able to piece together the facts and events after the trial and discovers the killer is someone very close to him. | ||
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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? - 70% Special suspect? - relative Murder of certain profession? Misc. Murder Plotlets - character killed during/after sexing - Proving innocence of very obvious suspect - Big focus on forensic evidence - Killer purposely leaves clues Kind of investigator Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Any non-mystery subplot? Legal Thriller Yes Legal Plotlets descript. of violence and chases - 20 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30 % 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: The antagonists are: - lawyer creatures How sensitive is this character? Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Midwest City? Yes City: - dangerous Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths Explicit sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - descript of kissing - touching of anatomy - actual description of sex - descript. of breasts - descript. of other female areas A lot of techno jargon? Yes Unusual forms of death - drowned - blunt clubbing (like seals) Unusual form of death? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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