| Palinurus Maciver was the name given both to the father and the son. They had something more in common in that they both died in the same room of the same house and in the same way. But this was no inherited disease. They both committed suicide on the same date, ten years apart, using rifles that were identical and with a copy of Emily Dickinson's collected poems open on the desk in front of them. They both died to the sound of Schumann's Childhood Themes.
Peter Pascoe was given twenty-four hours to prove that there were suspicious circumstances in the death of Pal the younger before the case was handed over to the suicide squad. He and Wieldy and Novello delve into the backgrounds of the Maciver family and their business connections A further death confirms that crimes have been committed. The identity of a key witness is discovered by a policeman with a quick eye for a fine pair of buttocks. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of story - Dry-cynical How difficult to spot villain? - Difficult, but some clues given What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 50% Misc. Murder Plotlets - solving long-past murder Kind of investigator descript. of violence and chases - 0 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Age: - 40's-50's Main Adversary Identity: - Female Setting Europe Yes European country: - England/UK 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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