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St. Martin's, Mar 2003, 23.95, 256 pp.
ISBN: 0312276567
Post Oak, Texas is a very tiny town where everyone seems to know one another, even their darkest secrets. To the surprise of the locals, the single father of a teen, Judge Jackson Crain, is seeing a visiting outsider preservationist out in the open. However, the county magistrate, like everyone except one person, has no idea who strangled his sister-in-law Dora Hughes and a transient. Jackson investigates, as he needs to know.
Still, in spite of the two murders, the women continue to meet at the Knit Shop to share tidbits about anyone who is not there. On the other hand the men never gossip except over coffee at the Wagon Wheel. While chitchat seems to be the cottage industry of Post Oak, the killer has struck at least twice but will the law figure out the identity in time to stop the culprit before he or she kills again.
RESTORED TO DEATH is an interesting small town regional mystery that brings to life the townsfolk (and a few corpses) so that the reader understands down home Texas. Jackson is a delightful main character, but even he seems overwhelmed by the obvious typecasting that engulfs him. The who-done-it pales next to the ensemble cast so that Nancy Bell's tale is not quite a Biggie.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Restored to Death |
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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 - 50%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
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?
- 70%
Kind of investigator
- skilled citizen investigator
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
- life in small town
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
Age:
- 40's-50's
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of 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
- insanity
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Texas
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 2
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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