| Plot Summary of Heat of the Moment |
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Onyx, Oct 2004, 6.99, 304 pp.
ISBN: 0451411587
The Torcher, a serial arsonist, blows up Maskers Tavern in the French Quarter, killing the son and heir apparent of mob chief Frank Belafini, the wife of the younger mobster, and thirteen other people. New Orleans Police Detective Teresa Vincent is temporarily reassigned from Homicide (until her partner returns from his honeymoon (see INTO THE FIRE) to the organized crime unit. Her new boss Sebastian Ruel assigns her to investigate the Torcher arsons as the man has links to the mob. He especially wants her to look at Fire Marshall Cort Gamble who he believes is the culprit.
Teri, who loves him although he rejected her following a one night stand, refuses to believe that Cort is the killer although each fire contained a victim linked to the Fire Marshall. As Terri digs deep, Cort, at first in his official capacity and than as a desperate man, tries to prove his innocence against a tidal wave of evidence pointing to his guilt. He loves Terri, but worries that the Torcher has targeted his women so she could be next if the fiery killer learns how he feels about her.
Terri is a terrific cop who though she loves Cort will seek the truth even if he proves to be the Torcher. Cort is a beleaguered lead protagonist who sees the obvious ties back to him, but cannot figure out who is using the rope to hang him or why he has a deadly enemy murdering innocent victims.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Heat of the Moment |
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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 - 40%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
How difficult to spot villain?
- Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 70%
Special suspect?
- lover
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- Proving innocence of very obvious suspect
Kind of investigator
- police procedural, American
Any non-mystery subplot?
- arson
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
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
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
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:
- Deep South
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 8 or more
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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