Genre
Thriller novel
Setting and Context
Set in January 1978 at Florida State University
Narrator and Point of View
Third-person narrative from Pamela’s perspective
Tone and Mood
The tone is cautionary, and the mood is ominous.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The protagonist is Pamela, and the antagonist is Bandy.
Major Conflict
The major conflict is the horrible crime incident that results in the death of Pamela's sorority sisters. Bundy has killed over thirty-five women since he escaped prison.
Climax
The climax is when Pamela returns to Tallahassee after 30 years when she receives a mysterious letter.
Foreshadowing
The escape of Bundy from prison for the second time foreshadows the death of two of Pamela's sorority sisters.
Understatement
Pamela downplays the danger of the man fleeing when she says it looks weird.
Allusions
The story alludes to “Murder on the Orient” by Agatha Christie, which talks about gruesome murders.
Imagery
The senses of hearing and sight are depicted when Pamela describes the strange sounds that wake her at 3 a.m. Pamela is shocked at the unbelievable scene of violence she encounters. Pamela sees two of her close friends dead and others injured.
Paradox
The main paradox is that the killer of the sonority sisters is a prisoner who has escaped prison twice and killed 35 women. The authority knows the man is a dangerous sex killer, but they fail to control his escape from prison.
Parallelism
There is a parallelism between Pamela’s conclusion that Bundy is the main suspect in the murder and Canon’s assertion over the same issue.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
n/a
Personification
n/a
