Murder of a Snake in the Grass
Denise Swanson Book Review

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Plot Summary of Murder of a Snake in the Grass

"

Signet, April 2003, 5.99, 272 pp.
ISBN 045120834X

When she turned eighteen, Sky Denison couldn't wait to leave her hometown of Scrumble River, a small town an hour and a half outside of Chicago. After doing two terms in the Peace Corps, she went to New Orleans where she earned a psychology degree and was engaged to a wealthy Creole aristocrat. When he dumped her, she returned to Scrumble River, broke, disillusioned and homeless. Her uncle Charlie used his influence to get her a position as psychologist for the school system and in the time she has been home, she has made a place for herself in the community.

She is therefore very unhappy when her ex-fiancé Luc St. Amant turns up wanting to reconcile and needing her to sign some papers that would put her on the board of the foundation that would help abused children. She is so upset that Luc is in town that she doesn't even want to get involved in the latest homicide case, but circumstances conspire to get her to investigate the mystery because that is the only way her ex-fiancee will be able to leave town.

Denise Swanson is one of the better new writers of amateur sleuth mysteries, a writer who shows the problems of the big city are just as prevalent in a small town. The heroine has gone from a shallow depressed person to a woman who is making a difference to the students who are under her care. Readers are going to love MURDER OF A SNAKE IN THE GRASS.

Harriet Klausner

Crested sapwood supportable noradrenaline runout.

"
Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of Murder of a Snake in the Grass

Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).

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? - Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story: - present (2000-2010)
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? - feelings towards family/friends
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status: - psychiatrist
Age: - 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use? - a little
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 40's-50's
Profession/status: - politician/elected ruler
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - an average amount
Motive of antagonist - money/treasure
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - Midwest

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths? - 1
Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript

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Murder of a Snake in the Grass Denise Swanson Book Review

Murder of a Snake in the Grass
Denise Swanson Book Review