| Plot Summary of Most Fortunate Son |
|---|
"Jerry Wilson, a private detective from Ft. Worth, Texas, certainly has a lot on his plate. Besides his normal coaching and family obligations, he is asked to investigate a case involving a cheating husband, a murdered wife, and a ditzy girlfriend-on-the-side. Not only that, but Dr. Bodie Kohler, a longtime friend and confrere for many of Jerry's cases, asks Jerry to investigate what happened to his son James during the Vietnam War. James' death is explained as a devastating yet commonplace event occurring in combat, but Bodie suspects there is something more to the story.
Jerry's plans to investigate the events surrounding James' death are halted when chaos erupts, and the lives of his family are threatened. Warren Duchtin, the previously mentioned cheating husband, is Jerry's primary suspect in the case of Warren's murdered wife, Joanne. It seems that Warren—or someone—knows Jerry is working hard to crack the case and is fighting back.
The novel comprises two unique subplots in which Jerry is the central figure: the plot involving Warren and the murder mystery, and the one involving the quest to uncover the truth of James' death. Eric Luck tells these stories brilliantly, constructing many unforgettable characters: the likeable Jerry, intelligent Bodie with the Southern drawl, the complicated war veteran Captain Billy, and Clayton, Bodie's other son who has harbored feelings of resentment for so long that it results in the unraveling of his moral fiber. "
Cassie, Resident Scholar
|
|
| Review Analysis of Most Fortunate Son |
|---|
|
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 - 30%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 20%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%
Tone of story
- very humorous
How difficult to spot villain?
- Somewhat obvious
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
What % of story relates directly
to the mystery, not the subplot?
- 50%
Special suspect?
- investigator him/herself
Murder of certain profession?
- "All in the family" murder
Misc. Murder Plotlets
- "All in the family" murder
Kind of investigator
- hard boiled/private eye
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:
- private investigator
Age:
- 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How much violence does he/she use?
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- natural phenomena
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an average amount
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Texas
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths?
- 2
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
|
|
