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| Plot Summary of Dead on the Dance Floor |
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"
Mira, Mar 2004, 24.95, 352 pp.
ISBN: 0778320278
Having attained first prize in every ballroom competition that she competed in, everyone agrees that Lara Trudeau is the dancing queen though all agree that the Prima Donna is a detestable nasty egomaniac. Currently, she is expected to triumph again as she vies for the trophy of the Universe of Champions event. However, this time during one of her classy moves Lara abruptly dies fittingly on the floor where she reigned as the monarch of dance.
Quinn O'Casey heads the investigation into the ballroom dance queen death that seems so suspicious. However, he goes undercover to learn what he can about the regulars, employees and owner of the Moonlight Sonata Dance Studio. His deepest interest is in the owner Shannon MacKay, but he is not sure if he wants to handcuff her as a criminal or as the woman he is falling in love with.
Police procedural romance readers will take great delight with the terrific DEAD ON THE DANCE FLOOR. The story line hooks the audience from the first step until the final pirouette. Because Lara is universally loathed, Quinn has too many suspects to contend with, but Shannon is the most obvious of all. Adding to his tension is he wants to not only believe in her innocence he wants to dance with her preferably in the bedroom not the ballroom. Shannon is his ideal partner so that the audience obtains a fine story that in many ways feels like a modernization of the classic film Laura.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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"Dead on the Dance Floor opens with the dramatic "accidental" death of a competition ballroom dancer in the middle of a dance. Lara Trudeau wasn't widely loved as a person, but as a dancer she excelled. One of her students who was also a lover, a young cop named Doug O'Casey, asks his brother, a former FBI profiler-turned-PI to look into Lara's death because the circumstances seem off. Quinn quickly discovers that Doug isn't the only one who thinks Lara was murdered--nor that there is any shortage of suspects.
Quinn begins taking lessons at the studio where Lara occasionally worked, and finds not only her ex-husband and Shannon Mackay, the dancer he shunned to marry Lara, but a number of Lara's competitors. In the meantime, two more women die, and Quinn is convinced that their deaths and the death of one of the studio's former students several months before are linked to Lara's. Unfortunately for Quinn, his prime suspects turn out to be his brother and Shannon, a woman he finds himself inexplicably drawn to."
Sarrah, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Dead on the Dance Floor |
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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 - 35%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 15%
Tone of story
- scarey (primal ax-wielding fear)
- 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?
- 60%
- 70%
Special suspect?
- lover
Murder of certain profession?
- dancer
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- Proving innocence of very obvious suspect
- Big focus on autopsies
Kind of investigator
- police procedural, American
- hard boiled/private eye
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
- feelings towards lover
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Is Romance a MAJOR (25%+) part of story?
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
- Female
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
- teacher
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
- just the right amount
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
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Female
- an organization
Age:
- 20's-30's
Eccentric:
Yes
- wild
- emotionally unstable
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
- a substantial amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
- money/treasure
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
- 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:
- Deep South
Water?
Yes
Water:
- pleasure/love boat
- lifeboat
- scuba under
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
- moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths?
- 1
- 3-4
Sex
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
- descript of kissing
- touching of anatomy
- licking
- actual description of sex
Unusual forms of death
- poisoning
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
- significantly more descript than dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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