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A Kiss Before Dying
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Plot Summary of A Kiss Before Dying
"This is a book of murder and betrayal. It is so well written that you cannot put it down. It is about a man who will do anything for money. ANYTHING. If you read the first pages you will not be able to put it down. "
Charlotte Wiggs, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of A Kiss Before Dying
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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: - 1930's-1950's
What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - nearly 100%
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status: - student
Age: - 20's-30's
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 - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 20's-30's
Profession/status: - student
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - throughout most of the book.
Motive of antagonist - money/treasure
How sensitive is this character? - mean, arrogant
Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Setting
United States Yes

Style
Person - mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths? - 3-4
Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
Most similar books to A Kiss Before Dying
Perry Mason Solves the Case of the Buried Clock by Erle Stanley Gardner
Maigret's First Case by Georges Simenon
The Big Kill by Mickey Spillane
The Yellow Room by Mary Roberts Rinehart
The Case of the Stuttering Bishop by Erle Stanley Gardner


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