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The Ugly Duckling
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Plot Summary of The Ugly Duckling
"Nell Calder was an ordinary plain housewife, grateful to have a handsome husband moving up in the business world.   Her world is changed forever however, when intruders invade her husband's fancy dinner party and murder him and their four year old daughter. Nell was brutally attacked also, and should have died, but she managed to survive. But it didn't matter anymore since her family was dead.

Then enters Nicholas Tanek. An ex criminal of sorts, he explains to Nell that the man who killed her family worked for Gardeaux, a distributor of the Columbian drug cartel.   The police are satisfied to just say that terroists were responsible that night because Gardeaux even has some in the police force working for him. Tanek is determined to protect Nell from Gardeaux because she's supposed to be dead. And he hasn't quite figured out the reason why she would be on his death list. Tanek promises to help Nell find the man who killed her daughter. Out for revenge, Nell has a new lease on life, and all under the protection of a new face the plastic surgeon has given her. No one will recognize her now."

Marie Morris, Resident Scholar

"Nell Calder was a plain nobody wife and mother, who married a rich somebody. Her husband was a rich financier and they lived an elegant international lifestyle, along with their young daughter.

Tragedy stuck as a hitman targets her husband the night of a lavish party. Nell also becomes a victim. She is stabbed and thrown from the balcony. Her face is so badly marred and her body so broken, she almost dies.

After a long, arduous recovery, Nell learns that her attacker is still out there. She wants him to pay for destroying her life and uses her hatred to help speed her recovery. Although determined, she knows this is not enough and finds she isn't physically capable. A trainer helps her body become a killing machine and now she is a new women. She is no longer an ugly duckling.

"

Tracey Ray, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of The Ugly Duckling
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 - 20%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 20%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 50%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%




Tone of story - very upbeat
Time/era of story: - 1980's-1999
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller Yes
Crime plotlets: - vigilante getting revenge
General Crime (including known murderer) Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here? - evil corporation/rich guy
If story PRIMARILY about main chr. being hunted... - hunted by killer/stalker
Is Romance a MAJOR (25%+) part of story? Yes

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status: - homemaker
Age: - 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events? Yes
How much violence does he/she use? - a little - a significant amount
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings - soggy whimpering jelly muffin
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic - healthy but a geeky weakling

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 20's-30's
Profession/status: - killer
Eccentric: Yes - obsessed - deluded - wild - eccentric - emotionally unstable
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount - an average amount
Motive of antagonist - kicks
The antagonists are: - big business leader(s)
Monster of some sort? Yes
Kind of monster: - the Wolfman
How sensitive is this character? - hard edged
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Retarded - Average intelligence
Physique - very athletic - average physique

Setting
Europe Yes
European country: - France
Island? Yes
Island: - on vacation
Misc setting - resort/hotel - fancy mansion

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths - very gorey references to deaths/dead bodies and torture
How many deaths? - 3-4 - 5-7
Sex Yes
What kind of sex: - actual description of sex
Unusual forms of death - poisoning - dropped from large heights
Unusual form of death? Yes
Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
Most similar books to The Ugly Duckling
Full Tilt by Janet Evanovich
The Voice Of The Night by Dean Koontz
Final Retributions by Kenneth P. O'Rourke
Fortune Cookie by Joanne Meyer
Oyster Blues by Michael McClelland


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Iris Johansen Resident Scholar Profiles

TOP SCHOLAR:
  
Laura Allen  

SCHOLARS:
Manda  Rey  Kathy Nielsen  Janice Herrera  Tracey Ray  Marie Morris  Karielle  


Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
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