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| Plot Summary of Slow Kill |
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"
Dutton, Aug 2004, 23.95, 278 pp.
052594799X
Santa Fe Police Chief Kevin Kerney flies to Bakersfield, California so that he can buy quarter horse breeding stock at the Double J Ranch near Paso Robles. When fellow guest septuagenarian Clifford Spalding is found dead, San Luis Opiso Sheriff's Department Sergeant Elena Lowery finds it interesting that the victim and the visiting cop have ranches in the Santa Fe area. She believes this is an unlikely coincidence especially when one considers that Clifford's much younger spouse Claudia, could easily know and ride horses on a New Mexico range with Kevin. Other questionable items also surface.
Knowing he is a person of interest and seeing the path the official investigation is going, Kevin makes inquiries into the history of the victim and learns that Clifford's first wife Alice believes that their son did not die in Vietnam three decades ago. Kevin believes her and wonders why the son was hidden from his mother. He seeks a link between then and now. Elena concludes Kevin is innocent; they join ranks as both suspect the current wife and someone else, a local cop most likely, tampered with the victim's medicine, but to prove homicide will be difficult.
The latest Kerney police procedural refreshingly takes him out of New Mexico (and not just California as he also goes east on this investigation), makes Kevin a suspect, and has the less experienced Lowery lead the inquiries. The story line is fast-paced as the current case points towards murder and a tie in to events from thirty years ago. Fans also see Kerney prepare for retirement (hopefully not for a dozen or so more books) as he buys his first breeding stock.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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"Santa Fe Police Chief Kevin Kerney travels to a California ranch looking to buy some prime quarter horse breeding stock; instead, he finds himself the prime suspect in a possible homicide when a guest at the ranch, Clifford Spalding, is found dead. Confronted by a determined cop unwilling to let him off the hook, Kerney decides to conduct his own investigation. As he digs into the victim's background, he learns that Spalding's ex-wife refuses to believe that her son, a soldier killed in Vietnam some thirty years ago, is dead.
Kerney soon finds himself sharing the woman's doubts. Did Spalding's current wife, a much younger woman, orchestrate his murder with the help of a lover? Did a California cop collude with Spalding to keep his ex-wife from learning the truth about her son?
Slow Kill races from West coast to East coast, as Kerney tries to find the answers to a thirty-year old mystery and extricate himself from a situation that could ruin his career."
Di Bingham, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Slow Kill |
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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 - 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?
- Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 60%
Special suspect?
- investigator him/herself
Murder of certain profession?
- "All in the family" murder
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- solving long-past murder
- Proving innocence of very obvious suspect
- Big focus on forensic evidence
Kind of investigator
- police procedural, American
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
- searching for missing person
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
Age:
- 20's-30's
- 40's-50's
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- 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
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
- Female
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- mastermind
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- money/treasure
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- California
Farm/Ranch?
Yes
Farm/Ranch:
- ranch
Misc setting
- fancy mansion
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 1
Sex
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
Unusual forms of death
- poisoning
Unusual form of death?
Yes
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Michael McGarrity Resident Scholar Profiles
TOP SCHOLAR:
 Di Bingham
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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