| Plot Summary of Big Trouble |
|---|
"Eliot Arnold is a mild-mannered ad-man and former reporter living in Miami. His business is going under and his teenage son Matt thinks he is a "dork."
One night, Eliot is called to the Cocoa Beach home of business executive Arthur Herk, where his son has been in a fight with Herk's wife because he arrived at the house intending to play-out a game called "Killer," which involves stalking a target with a squirt-gun. Matt's target is Jenny, Herk's stepdaughter and object of Matt's puppy-love affections. Meeting Herk's wife, Eliot immediately falls in love, but everyone is distracted by the fact that someone has just fired a rifle through Herk's living-room window, which is what led to the melee between Matt and Herk's wife.
What nobody knows is that Herk's employer, Penultimate, Inc., a Miami-based construction company and anti-Castro Cuban Mafia front, have discovered that he is skimming bribe-money and import a pair of hitmen named Henry and Leonard to kill him.
When Henry and Leonard fire into his living-room, Herk rushes to the Jolly Jackal, a seedy bar that is the cover for a Russian weapons-dealing operation, the suppliers for Penultimate's war on Castro. Intending to go to the feds for protection, Herk buys a working nuclear bomb, but is intercepted leaving the bar by a pair of small-time losers named Snake and Eddie, who believe him to be drug kingpin.
Returning to Herk's house, Snake and Eddie rob him, kidnap Jenny, and proceed to the airport, where they intend to go to the Bahamas.
The book now becomes a multi-player race, as Eliot, Mrs. Herk, a pair of violent FBI agents, and a couple of Miami cops all converge on the airport, where Snake and Eddie have already activated the bomb..."
James Craver, Resident Scholar
|
|
| Review Analysis of Big Trouble |
|---|
|
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).
|
|
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 20%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 20%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 40%
Tone of story
- very humorous
Time/era of story:
- 1980's-1999
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
The crook is....
- criminals killing each other
Crime Thriller
Yes
Crime plotlets:
- escape/rescue from kidnappers
Mostly a criminal POV story
Yes
General Crime (including known murderer)
Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here?
- evil corporation/rich guy
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- small businessman
Age:
- 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
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
- Average intelligence
Physique
- healthy but a geeky weakling
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- criminal
Eccentric:
Yes
- deluded
- wild
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
Motive of antagonist
- money/treasure
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Dumb
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Air?
Yes
Air:
- passenger plane
- skyjacking
City?
Yes
City:
- Miami
Misc setting
- fancy mansion
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths?
- 1
Sex
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
- descript of kissing
Unusual forms of death
- dropped from large heights
- exploded into bits
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
|
|
