Scarab - Don D'Ammassa Book Review

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Review Summaries

" Five Star, April 2004, 25.95, 268 pp. ISBN 1594141444 In the far distant future earth is just a memory as humanity has colonized countless worlds in numerous galaxies. One aspect of civilization remains the same: when there is people there is crime. The planet Tashista with its strict class system has bred a whole underground of millions of people engaging in some form of criminal activity. Crime and poverty abound in the Nashamata, the lowest class of society in the city of Soshambe. A serial killer known as the Scarab has killed twenty seven people over a two year period but since the victims were Nashamata, authorities didn't use all the resources at their disposal to catch the killer. In his third year of killing, The Scarab's first victim is the Prefect of Kishamkur's son and he uses all his considerable power to bear to make the catching of the killer a number one priority. Helping them is a pattern analyst and private detective Sandor Dyle who gets pulled into the investigation because the case interests him and almost becomes the killer's last victim. This science fiction police procedural is action packed, exciting and will appeal to readers of both genres. SCARAB is a fascinating mystery with many unexpected red herrings to divert the reader away from the true killer. Harriet Klausner "
Harriet Klausner, Resident Don D'Ammassa Scholar

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Overall Review

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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 10%

Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - science fiction story
Spying & Investigations Yes
What is main char. doing? - finding a killer (criminal)
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Cultural problems, alien culture Yes
Culture clash- - one culture tries to impose its culture on another group

Main Character
Identity: - Male
Profession/status: - private investigator
Age: - 40's-50's
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Genius
Physique - very athletic

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 40's-50's
Profession/status: - wealthy
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount
How sensitive is this character? - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Genius (really!)
Physique - physically sick

Setting
A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body: - humans in a futuristic society
Planet outside solar system? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
scientific jargon? (SF only) - a fair amount of scientific explanation
How much dialogue? - 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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