|
|
| Plot Summary of The Shape Of Snakes |
|---|
"
Putnam, Jul 2001, 24.95, 384 pp.
ISBN: 0399147330
In 1978 England, schoolteacher, M Raneleigh finds her neighbor Ann Butts dying in the street. M believes someone murdered “Mad Annie”, the only black person in the neighborhood. The police insist this was a hit and run in which the driver never knew they hit Mad Annie due to the nasty weather. Though Annie once called her a honky and was often seen talking to herself, M still feels something isn't Kosher about Annie's death. In her efforts to find out the truth, M becomes agoraphobic, anorexic, and a rift with her husband Sam occurs.
Not long afterward, the Raneleighs reconcile and head overseas for the next two decades. When Sam suffers a heart attack, the Raneleighs, accompanied by their two teenage sons, return home. When M meets Annie's former doctor, Sheila Arnold, her interest resurfaces because she still believes that a homicide occurred. Sheila informs her that Ann was a nice person suffering from Tourette's Syndrome but kept a neat home with many valuable items inside. This goes against what the police report say about Annie living in squalor-like conditions. The doctor was in America when Ann died. M tries to rekindle interest in a closed case with no one else wanting it open.
THE SHAPE OF SNAKES is a superb mystery that centers on the characters who feel very genuine in 1978 and two decades later. The ignorance towards Tourette's Syndrome and the bias towards blacks are cleverly included in M's “investigation.” which is why Annie's disease and race make it easier to whitewash the case. Minette Walters keeps the audience guessing as to whether it was murder or an accident and that is the reason this literary mystery is a one sitting read.
Harriet Klausner
"
Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
|
|
| Review Analysis of The Shape Of Snakes |
|---|
|
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
Spying/Terrorism Thriller
Yes
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 40%
Kind of investigator
- british mystery (I say!)
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller
Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown)
Yes
General Crime (including known murderer)
Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here?
- finding a known killer
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- homemaker
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- business executive
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a little/some
Motive of antagonist
- kicks
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
- rotating 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
|
|
|
Click here for more information about this book
Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
Use our site!
17 FREE Sci-Fi Ebooks!
FREE "How to be happy" Ebook!
Feedback
Most recent discussions:
General Book Talk
Book writing discussion
Off-topic message board
Norah Lofts
12:50:53 AM
Suzanne Weyn
4:47:34 PM
Wilma Counts
1:23:32 PM
George W. Bush
5:33:46 PM
Kin Platt
12:58:29 AM
Anonymous
12:47:34 PM
Lilian Jackson Braun
10:05:52 PM
Jane Rubino
10:04:38 PM
LaVyrle Spencer
10:04:00 PM
G.A. McKevett
10:03:31 PM
David Williams
10:03:01 PM
Steven Pressfield
10:02:30 PM
Jeanette Walls
10:00:19 PM
Darryl Ponicsan
9:59:27 PM
Ann Rinaldi
9:58:30 PM
R.L. Stine
9:57:34 PM
Geoffrey Huntington
9:57:14 PM
Betty Mahmoody
9:56:38 PM
Deric Longden
9:56:11 PM
Mary Downing Hahn
9:55:48 PM
More message boards
|
