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The Torso In The Town Book Summary and Study Guide

Detailed plot synopsis reviews of The Torso In The Town




Berkley, August 2002, 22.95, 352 pp.
ISBN 0425185028

Although Carole and Jude are both in their fifties, single and live right next door to each other in the West Sussex Coastal town of Fethering, they are total opposites. Jude is a free-spirited extrovert with an easygoing personality while Carole is conservative, prim, and down in the dumps because a relationship didn't work out.
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Jude attends a small dinner party in Fedborough, eight miles upriver from Fethering. The party comes to a complete halt when the torso of a human being is found. The police soon identify the body as that of Virginia Hargreaves, a woman who walked out on her husband Roddy three years ago. Thinking that a murder investigation will lift her neighbor's spirit, Jude involves Carole in an investigation that puts them in danger from a person who needs certain secrets to stay buried.

The latest Fethering mystery is an amusing tale where the town takes on a life of its own and is perceived as a separate character. The two female amateur sleuths complement each other and make a believable investigative team. Simon Brett has written a classic British style cozy that rivals the best of Agatha Christie.

Harriet Klausner

The review of this Book prepared by Harriet Klausner



Chapter Analysis of The Torso In The Town

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Plot & Themes

Composition of Book descript. of violence and chases 10%Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives 50%Feelings, relationships, character bio/development 30%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?    -   60% 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:    -   unemployed Age:    -   40's-50's Ethnicity/Race    -   White/American

Setting

Europe    -   Yes European country:    -   England/UK

Writing Style

Accounts of torture and death?    -   generic/vague references to death/punishment Amount of dialog    -   mostly dialog

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