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| Plot Summary of A River Out Of Eden |
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"
Doubleday, May 2001, 24.95, 364 pp.
ISBN: 0385494254
Perhaps her plight is that of most Americans as her heritage (as a half-Chinook Indian) battles with her professional life working as a Corps of Engineer marine biologist on the Columbia River. Francine Smohalla cares about both of her worlds even if the divergence leaves her with inner turmoil. She knows the dams built by the Corps have destroyed the life of her people and she realizes that her people want to destroy the dams.
However, Francine was not expecting a serial killer to emerge who goes one step further by eliminating those individuals working for the Corps and associated organizations. The evidence accompanying the first corpse discovered by Francine points towards a Chinook Indian as the culprit. As other events add to the heated dispute and the death count grows, Francine worries that her beloved Chinook father is the killer and she begins to investigate.
A RIVER OUT OF EDEN is an exciting amateur sleuth thriller that showcases the Pacific Northwest dispute between environment and heritage vs. technology. The story line is fast-paced, enjoyable, and filled with critical details that brings the area and the dispute to life. Although John Hockeberry has too many sub-plots filled with the range of issues diverting the reader at times from his central theme, the author writes a strong tale. Sub-genre readers will find this novel provides insight into a very complex debate inside an entertaining mystery.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of A River Out Of Eden |
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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
How difficult to spot villain?
- Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues
Time/era of story:
- 1980's-1999
Spying/Terrorism Thriller
Yes
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 40%
Special suspect?
- relative
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
General Crime (including known murderer)
Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here?
- finding a known killer
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- engineer
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
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:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- business executive
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an average 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
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Pacific NW
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 3-4
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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