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Frostline
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Plot Summary of Frostline
"

Poisoned Pen Press Sept 2003, 24.95, 336 pp.
ISBN 1590580621

When Henry King, former chief of the national security council, moves to Newbury, Connecticut, he buys the Zarega homestead and turns it into a country estate, Fox Trot. Mr. King's land is right where he plan to build a lake. King's next door neighbor, dairy farmer Ron Butler, leases a piece of land that the ex-statesman wants to buy but the two men can't come to any agreement.

King asks the town real estate agent Ben Abbot to try and mediate the dispute but Mr. Butler is a stubborn man who just wants to be left in peace on land his family owned for three generations. When Henry throws a house party, an explosion occurs and the man-made lake is destroyed. Killed in the blast is Mr. Butler's son and the state police believe that the former, an expert in setting explosives, set the bomb. They arrest him and Ben is hired to help his lawyer find some evidence to clear his client because if Mr. Butler isn't released from jail soon, he is going to go insane.

After writing HARDSCAPE AND STONEDUST Justin Scott took a hiatus from the Ben Abbott mysteries until now. Ben Abbot returns in FROSTLINE and this novel is even better than the first two books in the series. This is not a pretty novel and for the most part the characters aren't likable but it is a very interesting and colorful amateur sleuth tale starring a hero who did time and turned his life around. Using misdirection and red herrings M0r. Scott keeps the reader guessing about the identity of the bomber until he chooses to reveal it.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar

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




Tone of story - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
How difficult to spot villain? - Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story: - present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 70%
Kind of investigator - amateur citizen investigator
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot? - feelings towards family/friends
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - small businessman
Age: - 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use? - a little
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 60's-90's
Profession/status: - farmer
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 - very athletic

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - Northeast

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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