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The Spiral Path
Mary Jo Putney Book Review

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Plot Summary of The Spiral Path
"

Berkley, Jan 2002, 7.50 448 pp.
ISBN: 0425183017

    Kenzie Marlow is a great British actor who is a top Hollywood moneymaker. Though he loves her, he is allowing his wife Raine Scott, a highly regarded actress, to divorce him, after she caught him in bed with a co-star. He also hides his ugly past from her. While not quite as reticent, she too hid much of her childhood from him.

    Raine visits Kenzie to ask him to star in the movie she will soon direct based on a Victorian novel “The Centurion”. He would star as John Randall who falls in love, fights one last campaign overseas, but is captured by his enemy. He comes home broken, but considered a hero. Kenzie recognizes too much of himself in the character but cannot help but agree to do the movie for his beloved Raine. During the shooting that tortures Kenzie, their love still shines but proves not enough for them to reconcile. However, when the tabloids reveal Kenzie's past, will Raine stay by his side to help him heal so love can blossom between them once again?

    THE SPIRAL PATH is an extremely emotional tale starring a scarred hero filled with angst and a devastating childhood that dominates the tale though Raine too has family problems too. The use of flashbacks to portray the events of four years ago slows down the engaging plot. Still most readers will agree that Mary Jo Putney provides a deep character study relationship drama that grips the hearts of the audience from start to Finish.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of The Spiral Path
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of story - 1980's-1999
Marriage/Married Yes
Marriage subplot: - inconveniently married while playing footsy
Making a living subplot Yes
Making a living: - working ordinary lives
Inner struggle subplot Yes
Struggle with... - (general) search for identity/new understanding
Hidden Identity/Secret Motive Yes

Main Male Character
Profession/status: - entertainer
Age/status: - 20's-30's
How sexual is this person? - very picky
How romantic is this person? - very romantic
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Very much smarter than other characters
Physique - average physique

Main Female Character
Age/status: - 20's-30's
Profession/status: - business executive
How sexual is this person? - very picky
How romantic is this person? - very romantic
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - average physique

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - California

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - no torture/death
What % of story is romance related? - 70%
Focus of story - equally on him and her
How much dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Mary Jo Putney Resident Scholar Profiles

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