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In a Dark House
Deborah Crombie Book Review

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Plot Summary of In a Dark House
"

Morrow, Oct 2004, 23.95, 384 pp.
ISBN: 0060525258

A fire in the southwest reveals the body of a dead woman, but instead of letting the local police handle the case, Scotland Yard sends Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid to investigate because the warehouse that burned down belonged to MP Michael Harwood. The Victorian warehouse was being renovated by converting it into park flats, but rumors has it that was not succeeding so the fire department is looking for signs of arson.

Two people entering the building before the blaze were caught on video; one was Harwood's missing daughter Chloe. Also absent is Laura Novak and her child Harriet; however, Harriet's father Tony had left her with someone named Beth, an obvious alias. Duncan concentrates on the fire because he thinks a serial arsonist caused the deadly blaze.

Duncan's live-in lover Inspector Gemma James is also in town investigating the disappearance of the roommate of a friend of a friend. Gemma searches for Harriet before time runs out on the child. Neither realizes these two cases connect in a dramatic fashion.

In addition to all the pressure in their private lives, Duncan and Gemma are also in a custody battle over his son with the lad's maternal grandmother who blames the cop for her daughter's death and believe the couple is unfit to raise her grandson.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of In a Dark House
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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? - 60%
Kind of investigator - police procedural, British
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: - unemployed
Age: - 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use? - a little
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
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 - very athletic

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? - 2
Amount of dialog - significantly more dialog than descript
Most similar books to In a Dark House
A Fine Line by William G. Tapply
The Last Witnesss by K.J. Erickson
Down the Rabbit Hole by Peter Abrahams
Dangerous Games by Michael Prescott
Slow Kill by Michael McGarrity


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