"Davis Sanford is a recovering alcoholic who comes home for the first time in years for his grandfather's funeral. His family had disowned him years before, so he is very upset about coming home, for more than one reason. He brings with him his girlfriend (from the first book in the series) for moral support. His family is insanely rich, though they live in a small town in the middle of a giant tree farm.
When Davis and Jennifer get to Davis's hometown, it turns out that not only does the grandfather die, but so does another family member. Things start to look suspicious for every family member there, as there are hints of a long battle over money and control of the family estate. Throw in a crazy neighbor with post-traumatic stress syndrome, and there's a full house of suspects.
Davis and Jennifer use the Internet and forensic evidence to search for clues to the deaths of the family members while trying to hide their suspicions from their hosts/possible murderers."
matrix, Resident Scholar
Click above for the new Obama Girl Parody video!
Review Analysis of Mercy
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).
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 - 10% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 60% How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%
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?
- 70%
Special suspect?
- relative
Murder of certain profession?
- "All in the family" murder
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- cooped up in spooky house
- "All in the family" murder
- Proving innocence of very obvious suspect
- Big focus on forensic evidence
Kind of investigator
- husband/wife boy/girlfriend investigators
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Any non-mystery subplot?
- feelings towards family/friends
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- small businessman
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 60's-90's
Profession/status:
- wealthy
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
The antagonists are:
- rednecks
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Forest?
Yes
Small town?
Yes
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 3-4
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
