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True Believers
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Plot Summary of True Believers
"Religious issues provide a background for murder in this Gregor Demarkian mystery. Four varieties of religious belief are represented on one block in Philadelphia. St. Anselm's Catholic Church is still reeling from the the child molestation scandals. Across the street from St. Anselm's is St. Stephen's Episcopalian Church which has become a refuge for members of the gay community. Down the street from these two churches is a fundamentalist religious group which deplores homosexuality, and across the street from this group is the home of Edith Lawton, an author of articles in atheist magazines. The deaths of two Catholic parishioners are the beginning of a tragic series of events which will involve people of every religious persuasion on the block and even the Cardinal Archbishop of Philadelphia. "
Linda Bertland, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of True Believers
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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 - 20%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 30%




Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
How difficult to spot villain? - Challenging
Time/era of story: - present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 90%
Kind of investigator - skilled citizen investigator
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Religious overtones? Yes
Any non-mystery subplot? - minority/women/homosexual issues
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - retiree
Age: - 40's-50's
How much violence does he/she use? - none
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
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

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - Mid-Atlantic states
City? Yes

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths? - 5-7
Amount of dialog - significantly more descript than dialog
Most similar books to True Believers
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Little Scarlet by Walter Mosley
Parental Source by Chris Freeburn


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Jane Haddam Resident Scholar Profiles

TOP SCHOLAR:
  
Harriet Klausner  

SCHOLARS:


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