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A Private War
Patrick Sheane Duncan Book Review

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Plot Summary of A Private War
"

Putnam, June 2002, 24.95, 336 pp.
ISBN 039914885x

The lieutenant colonel is career military with the common officer goal of wanting to join the elite general officer club. Lieutenant Colonel Meredith Cleon, the new provost marshal of Fort Hazleton, Indiana, doesn't think her new back water post will do anything to advance her career but she couldn't say no to the Star who requested she take the assignment.

From the moment she gets on the base, she knows she's not going to like her stay at Fort Hazelton. Her immediate superior is a man she had trouble with in the past and her aide has a problem with a woman as a boss. The day gets worse when a general's aide is found tied to a target on the range, her body riddled with bullet holes. Then the PM discovers a cache of weapons headed for Fort Knox was stolen. To add to Meredith's woe's an Afro-American and a Jew are the victims of hate crimes. Meredith wants to see if there is a common denominator to these three crimes preferably before her career goes down the tubes.

A PRIVATE WAR takes no prisoners. Everyone is either a suspect or a target and the protagonist must make sure she knows friends from foes. Patrick Sheane Duncan creates a fascinating story line, which enables readers to see what happens during a military police investigation. This is an excellent story created by an expert writer.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of A Private War
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

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: - present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 60%
Murder of certain profession? - soldiers
Misc. Murder Plotlets - Big focus on forensic evidence - Big focus on autopsies
Kind of investigator - police procedural, American
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller Yes
Crime plotlets: - search for gems/treasure/money - white collar fraud or theft
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes
General Crime (including known murderer) Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here? - stolen goods organization

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status: - police/lawman
Age: - 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use? - a little
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Very much smarter than other characters
Physique - very athletic

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 40's-50's
Profession/status: - mastermind
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist - money/treasure
How sensitive is this character? - mean, arrogant
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Very much smarter than other characters
Physique - very athletic

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - Northeast
Misc setting - fort/military installation

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths? - 2
Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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