| Plot Summary of Ghost Towns |
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Dunne, Feb 2002, 23.95, 272 pp.
ISBN: 0312280416
Cochise County, Arizona Victim Advocate Chloe Newcombe knows that in spite of the relatively small population and the isolation of the mountains she has plenty of clients assigned to her. Local Deputy Sheriff Hector Estrada turns to Chloe to inform Lee Thomas that someone killed her husband, State Supreme Court Judge Cal Thomas, in the nearby ghost town Windy City. Chloe is shocked to observe Lee as an antisocial shell of the once civic-minded individual she had been and her family totally ripped asunder.
As Chloe tries to help Lee, reporter Nate Pendergast, who was working on a story about Judge Thomas, has disappeared. Chloe's lover Craig Williams another person linked to Thomas also vanishes. Rationalizing what she is doing as part of her job to help victims, Chloe investigates the late Judge and his links to the missing people starting with the Thomas family. Chloe is unaware of the danger she places herself in by stretching her job beyond the limits.
Once the audience accepts Chloe's definition of her job to include “police” investigation, the story line is an engaging amateur sleuth tale. However, by going down that path, readers lose an opportunity to see what a victim advocate must fully deal with, as that role serves as a secondary plot to Chloe's inquiries. Elizabeth Thornton provides an entertaining mystery, but needs to place Chloe on the fringe of the case because her official work should serve as the lead theme of the plot. In other words, leave the crime busting to the pros, but make that a subplot. Amateur sleuth fans will delight in Chloe's antics, but feel a bit gypped.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Ghost Towns |
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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
descript. of violence and chases - 10%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 60%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- very upbeat
How difficult to spot villain?
- Very difficult--no foreshadowing/clues
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 60%
Kind of investigator
- skilled citizen investigator
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
- Female
Profession/status:
- champion of justice
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
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- mastermind
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate 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:
- West
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 2
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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