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The Coil
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Plot Summary of The Coil
"

St. Martin's, Apr 2004, 24.95, 464 pp.
ISBN: 0312301448

Liz Sansborough has come out of the cold to make a life for herself as a psychology professor at the University of California at Santa Barbara. She feels that her past as a CIA field operative and the daughter of the notorious Cold War assassin Carnivore is yesterday's news.

However, though she believes her heritage and work experience is ancient history, others disagree starting with an assault while riding her bicycle. Afterward, she learns that someone has kidnapped her cousin vacationing in Paris. The ransom is the lost files of Carnivore that allegedly contains numerous murders of prominent people. The problem for the beleaguered Liz is that she does not even know if they exist or are just an urban legend. As she reluctantly returns to her former occupation teaming up with British undercover agent Simon Childs, they begin to uncoil the Coil, but as they get closer to these bigwigs the danger rises and the death count grows.

Though one must wonder how Liz can go about her espionage work refusing to carry a gun in spite of swimming in a sea of red, fans will enjoy her sense of humor that surfaces at odd moments to lighten an intense story line. The plot moves at a rate faster than the speed of light so that even Robert Ludlum would be amazed. Espionage thriller fans will want to go along for the ride that returns a great protagonist (see MASQUERADE) whose past will not allow her to hide in the pillars of academia as she prefers.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of The Coil
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 20%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%




Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
Time/era of story: - present (2000-2010)
Spying/Terrorism Thriller Yes
Cloak & Dagger Plotlets: - preventing/finding assassin
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Who's the terrorist enemy here? - generic terrorists
Search for technology? - state secrets

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status: - spy
Age: - 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use? - just the right amount
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
How sensitive is this character? - 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: - an organization
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist - money/treasure
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
Asia/Pacific Yes
Asian country: - Russia

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths? - 3-4
Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript
Most similar books to The Coil
The President's Assassin by Brian Haig
Heart of the Hunter by Deon Meyer
No Man's Dog by Jon A. Jackson
The Bourne Legacy by Eric Van Lustbader
Liars and Thieves by Stephen Coonts


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