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| Plot Summary of Soul Circus |
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Little, Brown, Feb 2003, 24.95, 341 pp.
ISBN: 0316608432
The case against drug dealer Granville Oliver is so tight that state execution is a sure shot especially since his deputy Philip Wood testified against him. Desperate, Granville's attorney hire DC private investigator Derek Strange to coax Wood's former girlfriend Devra Stokes, who once filed a brutality complaint against him, to testify so she can destroy his credibility leading to life instead of death for his client.
At the same time, Strange's partner, former cop Terry Quinn's has a client, pathetic small time hood Mario Durham, who hires him to find his missing girlfriend Olivia Elliot. Mario is the older brother of the head of the notorious Six-hundred Crew in Washington Highlands. Terry knows his client lies about love forever, etc., as Terry wants his stolen drugs that she took from him. Other sleuths also work cases, as DC is a place for job security for private investigators.
The eleventh appearance of Derek Strange is a powerful private investigative tale that shows how little society is doing to help teens make it. The Durham siblings are on the career path of criminality with no detours. Even prison time will do no more than slow down the pace of their fall. Guns and butter are the market place as both can be purchased easily and relatively cheaply. Still even with such a strong message, the tale is loaded with action, plenty of life and death scenes, and the return of long time characters like Foreman, and a surprise guest appearance by Nick Stefanos. This gritty urban thriller will leave most readers agreeing with the hero's thankful belief that his home is an oasis of love and care in a deadly desert.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Soul Circus |
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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 - 10%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 50%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
The crook is....
- on the run from the law
Legal Thriller
Yes
Legal Plotlets
- finding out whether someone is really guilty
Crime Thriller
Yes
Crime plotlets:
- wrongly convicted clearing his name
Mostly a criminal POV story
Yes
General Crime (including known murderer)
Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here?
- drug dealers
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- private investigator
Age:
- 40's-50's
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
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- mastermind
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- money/treasure
The antagonists are:
- Drug kingpins
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Southeast
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 0 (not a murder mystery)
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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