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| Plot Summary of Murder of a Pink Elephant |
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"School psychologist Skye Denison has returned to her hometown of Scumble River to work at the local schools and is shocked to discover that drugs have hit her small town. And it gets even worse when a member of her brother's band, Pink Elephant, is found murdered at the high school Valentine's Day dance. The police suspect her brother Vince and Skye must do everything in her power to clear her brother and catch the real killer, without becoming a victim herself."
Kathy Thomason, Resident Scholar
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Signet, July 2004, 5.99, 272 pp.
ISBN 0451212104
When Sky Dennison graduated school, she left Scumble River before the ink on her diploma was dry. After she lost her job, her boyfriend dumped her and she didn't have enough money to pay the rent, she returned home. Her uncle got her the position of school psychologist and after almost three years Sky realizes she likes living and working in her hometown, being close to friends, family and her lover Simon.
The high school sponsors a dance for the students and hire Pink Elephant, a band that includes Sky's brother Vince, to play at the event. She notices that two members are at each other's throat but her brother won't tell her why. At the night of the dance, a fire alarm evacuates the building; when Skye looks to see if anyone is in the building, she trips over the dead body of a band member. Vince is a prime suspect so Sky once again tries to track down a murderer so that she can exonerate his brother.
Although Scumble River is a small community, it has many of the problems of a big city including students taking hard drugs. While trying to find a killer, Sky always wants to find the methamphetamine lab so the sheriff can close it down and arrest the dealer. The heroine is tough when it comes to her students and her family, going the extra mile to get them out of trouble yet with Simon all she can think of is “Give me give me good lovin”. MURDER OF A PINK ELEPHANT is an upbeat amateur sleuth mystery that takes place in a quirky town with zany characters.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Murder of a Pink Elephant |
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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 - 55%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 25%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- very humorous
- very upbeat
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%
Murder of certain profession?
- musicians
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- Proving innocence of very obvious suspect
Kind of investigator
- amateur 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
- Female
Profession/status:
- teacher
- psychiatrist
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- politician/elected ruler
- police/lawman
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
- an average amount
Motive of antagonist
- power
The antagonists are:
- government bureaucracy
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Deep South
- Midwest
Small town?
Yes
Small town people:
- nice, like Andy/Opie/Aunt Bee
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 1
- 3-4
Sex
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Denise Swanson Resident Scholar Profiles
TOP SCHOLAR:
 Kathy Thomason
SCHOLARS:
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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