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The Hobo Chronicles
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Plot Summary of The Hobo Chronicles
" Forty and jobless, Acey Albert Tapp faces his mother's illness and his own personal inadequacies. He meets Webster McMunn, an aging private investigator. Attracted to the open-ended life of a sleuth, and anxious to give his mother a reason to be proud of her sole offspring, Acey hooks up with the PI, and is forced to take top billing when his boss is hospitalized. He is pulled into a double web of mystery: that of a shoeless man found dead in a Dumpster, and that of a local woman missing for almost half a century. Acey discovers a connection between the two cases. At the same time, what appears to be a run of bad luck strips him of all he holds dear - his mother, girlfriend, vehicle, residence and reputation.
With Webb's help, Acey rebounds. Clues crystallize and take Acey and Webb on a journey of discovery. They unearth long-ago multiple murders in a small Canadian town, and at the same time begin to learn of each other's personal tragedy. The murders lead them back home and to the impossible task of nailing an unknown suspect.
An anonymous letter informs Acey that his mother was murdered. The writer of the letter is found deceased. A suspect is identified and tailed. The suspect dies in a collision with a train. "

, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of The Hobo Chronicles
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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 - very upbeat
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%
Murder of certain profession? - bums
Misc. Murder Plotlets - solving long-past murder
Kind of investigator - hard boiled/private eye
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot? - searching for missing person
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - private investigator
Age: - 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events? Yes
How much violence does he/she use? - a little
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 60's-90's
Profession/status: - police/lawman
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - an average amount
Motive of antagonist - power
How sensitive is this character? - hard edged
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters

Setting
The Americas (not US): Yes
The Americas: - Canada
Small town? Yes

Style
Part of a series? Yes
Person - mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths? - 8 or more
Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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