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| Plot Summary of Gaudy Night |
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"In Gaudy Night, the mystery takes a backseat to the characters. Normally, that'd be a disaster, but Sayers writes so well she can pull it off - and pull it off masterfully.
Harriet Vane returns to her Oxford alma mater, only to become involved in a poison pen mystery that threatens to do serious harm to her college. "
Ivy, Resident Scholar
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" Gaudy Night is a tale of intrigue within an intellectual setting. The crime is not actually a physical wrong committed against any number of people, but is more of an intellectual crime committed against an educational institutition.
The protagonist, Harriet Vane is asked to return to her alma mater Oxbridge, to solve the mystery of who might be doing the mechevious acts against certain Dons within the school. Vane herself has just recently been acquitted of murder against her old boyfriend who had been found dead of poisoning. Vane calls in her good friend Peter Wimsey to help her solve the mystery of the university.
Wimsey is a world-renown sleuth who has political connections all over the continent. Through his many investigative tactics Wimsey is able to prove that the crime is against the intellectual women of the school and also against their integrity as scholastic members of society. The antagonist, due to the fact that her husband lost his tenure because of one of the Don's reports, has become bitter and evengeful.
The plot of Gaudy Night is a highly sophisticated plot and is definately not for the reader who is looking for a easy and light-hearted read. "
Christina Forsyth, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Gaudy Night |
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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
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 70%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- Dry-cynical
- very upbeat
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
How difficult to spot villain?
- Somewhat obvious
Time/era of story:
- 1930's-1950's
- 1900-1920's
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Is Romance a MAJOR (25%+) part of story?
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- scholar
- writer
Age:
- 20's-30's
Has special powers?
Yes
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
Ethnicity/Race
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
- Genius (really!)
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Female
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- servant
Has special powers?
Yes
Eccentric:
Yes
- obsessed
- emotionally unstable
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
- a substantial amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 0 (not a murder mystery)
Sex
Yes
A lot of techno jargon?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
- 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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