Allreaders.com

Designed To Kill Book Summary and Study Guide

Detailed plot synopsis reviews of Designed To Kill




Berkley, March 2003, 5.99, 208 pp.
ISBN 0425189112

A father and his children stop at a pumpkin stand to buy an artistically carved jack-o-lantern when one of the kids discovers that a scarecrow in the grove is a dead man. His throat has been cut open and the case attracts a lot of media publicity because the victim is Toby Ashcroft, who founded his own dot.com company, which made him millions before it went bust. His sister Ivy, who inherits his whole estate, is holding a new age symposium at Star House and one of the speakers is Salome Waterhouse.
Click here to see the rest of this review...


From the time, she arrives on the Ashcroft estate, feng shui practitioner Salome finds very little to recommend the place. After a guest is murdered, the conference is canceled with everyone getting sent home. When the police arrest a suspect, Salome thinks they made a mistake and applying the same senses she uses in feng shui, she investigates the murder to insure the vindication of the innocent party.

Denise Osborne does an incredible job showing what feng shui is (and is not) and how readers can apply the techniques, with very little effort, into their everyday lives. The protagonist combines mysticism with pragmatism, but her willingness to go one step or more beyond the norm is what readers will admire about her. This amateur sleuth tale is one book that is so entertaining it must be finished in one sitting.

Harriet Klausner

The review of this Book prepared by Harriet Klausner



Chapter Analysis of Designed To Kill

Click on a plot link to find similar books!

Plot & Themes

Composition of Book descript. of violence and chases 10%Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives 60%Feelings, relationships, character bio/development 20%How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) 10% Tone of story    -   suspenseful (sophisticated fear) How difficult to spot villain?    -   Difficult, but some clues given Time/era of story:    -   2000+ (Present) What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot?    -   60% Misc. Murder Plotlets    -   Proving innocence of very obvious suspect Kind of investigator    -   amateur citizen investigator Kid or adult book?    -   Adult or Young Adult Book Any non-mystery subplot?    -   feelings towards family/friends Crime Thriller    -   Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown)    -   Yes

Main Character

Gender    -   Female Profession/status:    -   artist Age:    -   20's-30's Ethnicity/Race    -   White/American

Setting

United States    -   Yes The US:    -   California

Writing Style

Accounts of torture and death?    -   generic/vague references to death/punishment Amount of dialog    -   significantly more dialog than descript

Books with storylines, themes & endings like Designed To Kill

Denise Osborne Books Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
2 Ways to Search!
Or



Our Chief Librarian