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| Plot Summary of Cutwork |
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"
Berkley, Jan 2003, 6.99, 272
ISBN 0425193896
In the small Minnesota town of Excelsior, everyone looks forward to the yearly Art on the Lake Crafts Fair. At this year's event, Betsy Devonshire, owner of Crewel World mans the hospitality booth. When she hears sirens and sees people heading toward a booth near her, she stays away from it but people quickly tell her that someone slashed the throat of the woodcarver Robert McFey.
It isn't long before the local police arrest sixteen-year-old Mickey Sinclair for the crime. Mickey's bloody fingerprint is found in the booth and money is found in his home. He denies being at the fair but other people have sees him there. Most townsfolk think he is a troubled person, but they don't believe he is a killer. After all the homicides Betsy has solved, the townsfolk want her to find the real killer so that Mickey's life isn't spent behind bars.
What's very interesting about CUTWORK is that the family, neighbors and friends all believe the suspect is capable of criminal acts but don't believe he is a killer so they band together to pressure Betsy into solving the crime. Betsy doesn't want anything to do with the case until she sees Mickey and believes that he might be innocent of this crime. CUTWORK is a fabulous amateur sleuth tales filled with red herrings and misdirection to prevent the reader from seeing who the killer turns out to be until the final stitch is sewn.
Harriet Klausner
"
Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Cutwork |
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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).
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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 - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%
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?
- 70%
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- Proving innocence of very obvious suspect
Kind of investigator
- amateur 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:
- small businessman
Age:
- 40's-50's
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- artist
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional 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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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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