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Have You Seen Dawn? Book Summary and Study Guide

Detailed plot synopsis reviews of Have You Seen Dawn?




Simon & Schuster, Feb 2003, 24.00, 256 pp.
ISBN 0743213661

Amethyst, Texas might no longer be home for Rue Dunwitty but going back to the small town makes her feel nostalgic. It is a peaceful place unlike San Francisco where she now lives. When she spots a poster asking if anyone has seen Dawn who has gone missing on the way to the Amethyst supermarket, she's shocked because things like that don't happen in her hometown.
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Rue is staying at her grandmother's home. One night when she has trouble sleeping, she sees a light across the field on her father's property. The next day she explores the run down area and finds Dawn's naked body in an empty cistern, burn marks on her arms and legs. Rue calls the sheriff to come over but by the time he arrives, the body is missing. Rue starts asking questions and comes to the attention of a killer who would like to make her victim number four.

HAVE YOU SEEN DAWN? is a gothic melodrama complete with an innocent maiden, a brooding hero and a surplus of likely suspects. This is a very atmospheric tale, one in which the tension slowly but steadily amplifies until the audience is ready to jump out of their skin. The killer of three innocent teens will come as a shock to the audience because he is the last person anyone would suspect. Steven Saylor is one author who consistently tells a mesmerizing story.

Harriet Klausner

The review of this Book prepared by Harriet Klausner



Chapter Analysis of Have You Seen Dawn?

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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?    -   Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues Time/era of story:    -   2000+ (Present) What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot?    -   70% Kind of investigator    -   amateur citizen investigator Kid or adult book?    -   Adult or Young Adult Book Any non-mystery subplot?    -   life in small town Crime Thriller    -   Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown)    -   Yes

Main Character

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

Setting

United States    -   Yes The US:    -   Texas

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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Steven Saylor Books Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
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