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"Tom Mason is a teacher at Grover Cleveland High School. He teaches remedial English and has gotten to know most, if not all, of the slower students in the area. One of the families which he has constantly been trying to help, both inside and outside of the classroom, was the Trasks. Tom had helped Eric Trask avoid a drug charge and get his life back together, a feat for which Mrs. Trask was eternally grateful. Mrs. Trask never forgot Tom's involvement and help, so when her younger son, Jeff, was arrested for murdering his pregnant girlfriend, she immediately came to Tom for help.
Tom was certain that Jeff couldn't have killed Susan. Jeff seemed to have genuinely cared for Susan and was stunned when he discovered that she was pregnant when she died. He spilled his guts to Tom and begged for his help. The last time Susan was seen alive was leaving a party with Jeff, but Jeff had a fight with Susan later on and she left him and headed out on her own. Tom followed his instincts and tried to interview Jeff's friends and fellow students who were at the party. There was Paul Conlan, gorgeous jock, student body president, the perfect son and best friend; Becky Twitchell, the daughter of the school board president, beautiful but vicious, she made life miserable for everyone and always got revenge; Doris Bradford, the junior prom queen who was just happy to go along with everyone else; and Roger Daniels, the consummate class clown who could turn mean when someone got him angry on the football field. As Tom tried to put pressure on the kids to find out who really killed Susan, he soon discovered that there was a major drug ring going on at school, with students both dealing and using, as well as supplying to teachers like Pete Montini and George Windham. However, as Tom tried to push harder with the help of his lover, famous pitcher Scott Carpenter, he quickly discovered that someone was willing to do anything to keep their secrets buried...
This is the second book in the Tom & Scott mystery series after A Simple Suburban Murder."
Debbie, Resident Scholar
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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 - 20%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- very upbeat
How difficult to spot villain?
- Somewhat obvious
Time/era of story:
- 1980's-1999
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 40%
Murder of certain profession?
- students/teachers
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- Proving innocence of very obvious suspect
Kind of investigator
- amateur citizen investigator
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:
- teacher
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- just the right amount
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
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
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- killer
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an average amount
Motive of antagonist
- power
The antagonists are:
- Drug kingpins
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Midwest
City?
Yes
City:
- Chicago
Style
Part of a series?
Yes
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths?
- 2
Sex
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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