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| Plot Summary of Time's Fool: A Mystery of Shakespeare |
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St. Martin's, Jun 2004
ISBN: 0765303043
In 1603, The Dark Lady of sonnet fame contacts her former lover who immortalized her in his works, the highly successful affluent playwright Will Shakespeare. The great bard is excited with the upcoming rendezvous, but when the meet, he is shocked. The Dark Lady looks wretched instead of fetching and seems nearer death than the lure of life caused by her promiscuous lifestyle as syphilis has taken its toll. She demands money or she will expose Will to his wife and the aristocracy he courts.
However, a fire breaks out at the meeting location. Will and the Dark Lady flee, but her leap from the roof ends in her tragic death. Stunned by the deadly tryst, Will is next accused of killing a protégé with the motive to hide an illicit affair between them. With the help of Sir Robert Cecil, Keeper of the Privy Seal, he stays out of prison so that Will can begin his own inquiries, assisted by his spouse Anne.
Obviously, Shakespeare is the key figure in this solid Elizabethan mystery. He comes across as a fascinating multifaceted figure who cannot resist the lure of his youth, but also deprecatingly calls himself "Time's Fool" because he knows better.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Time's Fool: A Mystery of Shakespeare |
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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:
- middle ages
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 70%
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?
- feelings towards lover
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- writer
Age:
- 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- British
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- writer
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
- average physique
Setting
Europe
Yes
European country:
- England/UK
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 1
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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Leonard Tourney Resident Scholar Profiles
TOP SCHOLAR:
Harriet Klausner 
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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