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A Playdate With Death Book Summary and Study Guide

Detailed plot synopsis reviews of A Playdate With Death




Berkley, June 2002, 22.95, 240 pp.
ISBN 0475184730

    She is on indefinite leave from her job as a public defender but Juliet Applebaum isn't satisfied being a stay at home mom to her two children. The only time she is truly happy is when she can fit a murder investigation into her hectic schedule. When her friend and trainer is found dead the police rule it a suicide but Juliet's instincts go into overdrive.
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    In Juliet's expert opinion, Bobby was a laid back, easygoing guy with no apparent reason to kill himself. She convinces his girlfriend to give her Bobby's computer to see if there is anything on it that would give a clue to her trainer's state of mind before he died. She discovers that Bobby was searching for his biological parents and when Juliet starts questioning those involved in the search, somebody reacts by threatening her family.

    A PLAYDATE WITH DEATH is an intricate cozy that stars a protagonist that is impossible to dislike. Her frustrations and troubles with being a stay at home parent add comic relief to a very serious and believable story line. Ayelet Waldman is a natural storyteller who has created such an intricate mystery that readers will want to finish the book in one sitting while obtaining other Mommy-Track novels.

Harriet Klausner

The review of this Book prepared by Harriet Klausner



Chapter Analysis of A Playdate With Death

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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    -   Dry-cynical 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    -   skilled citizen investigator Kid or adult book?    -   Adult or Young Adult Book Crime Thriller    -   Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown)    -   Yes

Main Character

Gender    -   Female Profession/status:    -   homemaker 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    -   roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
Ayelet Waldman Books Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
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