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Fall Guy
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Plot Summary of Fall Guy
"

Morrow, Sept 2004, 23.95, 272 pp.
ISBN: 0060538996

Detective Michael Brody informs private investigator Rachel Alexander that she is the executor of Timothy O'Fallon's will which perplexes her because she doesn't know anyone by that name. By the time she meets with Detective Brody, she remembers that Timothy attended a post-traumatic stress group. She and her therapy dog Dashiell provided assistance to the attendees. What puzzles Rachel is that he only spoke one sentence to her and she never thought Timothy was the type who would have committed suicide.

Brody warns her that Parker Bowling, a man Timothy took into his home to help him out and make a new start in life will contact her to get his things out of the sealed apartment. He's a liar, a con man and a thief according to Brody so Rachael should watch him at all times. When they finally meet, he tells Rachel he is staying at his aunt's house, the same relative the police later find floating in the river. When Rachel and Dashiell pass a dumpster, the dog's training kicks in and Rachel knows she's going to find a dead baby in it. She's right; the dead person is one of Timothy's siblings. Rachel now believes Timothy was murdered by a ruthless person who set Parker up to be the fall guy.

It's been a long time since a Rachel Alexander mystery was published but she's back and better than ever. The heroine never understands why she was made the executor of Timothy's will but she's glad he did it to because she was able to prove he didn't commit suicide. FALL GUY is a well written cerebral mystery where characterization is more important than the action scenes of this complex and multi-layered crime thriller.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of Fall Guy
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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 - 40%
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: - present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 70%
Kind of investigator - hard boiled/private eye
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot? - running a business/making a living
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Female
Profession/status: - private investigator
Age: - 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use? - just the right amount
Ethnicity/Race - White/American
How sensitive is this character? - 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: - Prince/Nobleman/King
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a little/some
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
United States Yes
The US: - Northeast

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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