Saturday, July 20, 2013

Whodunnit? Book. * MAJOR SPOILER ALERT!*

Ok, so two nights ago, I finished the Whodunnit? book. And about halfway through the book, I *kinda* predicted the ending, but mostly due to who I liked. Let me explain, though.

I'll say this as a warning to anyone reading on their Kindle. Don't push that X-Ray button! Don't do it! I don't use my Kindle much. If I find a book that's significantly cheaper on Kindle, I'll buy it on there, read it, and then put it aside. While reading this book, I played around with buttons and discovered the point of the X-Ray button. WORST TIME EVER. If you didn't know, this shows you where a character pops up in the book. For example, if a character only appears at the beginning, and then fades out, you'd see a really dark bar, and then some kinda spaced out lines until they're no longer mentioned. So when reading Whodunnit?, after a person dies and their murder is analyzed, they aren't really going to pop up anymore. So basically, accidentally pushing this button mapped out almost the entire death order for me. Oops. I still enjoyed the book nonetheless.

So based on what I saw on X Ray, I discovered that the last four alive appeared to be Darrel, Thomas, Bryce, and Jacqueline. All throughout the book, I was rooting for Bryce to make it out alive. I couldn't tell from X-Ray whether Darrel or Thomas died first, but it was clear that Bryce and Jacqueline were there 'til the end. So about halfway through the book, when I discovered the X-Ray button, I had my mind made up that Jacqueline was the killer, and that Bryce was the winner. And I was right.

More importantly, I'm interested in the implications that this has on the show. I'm not sure if this makes Dana fall under suspicion more or less. Jacqueline, like Dana, is a nurse, and uses that to her advantage. Personally, it kinda confirms my Dana suspicion, since the book's purpose is for viewers to understand the killer and the show more. But I'm still not sure that it would be THAT obvious.

I also like that, even though the killer in the book and show are different, the killer employs many of the same techniques. Make it look like a mountain lion killed Don, when really it was cyanide vs. make it look like Frank died by being stabbed by a swordfish, when really he was poisoned. Also, along those lines, if they were trying to draw a parallel between Don and Frank, they didn't do a good job. Don was far more likeable and pleasant. Frank was just a grumpy old man.

Overall, I liked the storyline of the book. (obviously, cause it's exactly the same as the show...) However, I can tell that it's written by an idea guy rather than an execution guy. What I mean is that the story is interesting and the deaths are clever, but it's not the best quality of writing. There is literally NO suspense with the Spared/Scared cards. Some of the dialogue doesn't seem realistic, and there were many times when I felt like Zuiker needed to word something better. Also, I'm not sure if he wrote so many stereotypical characters intentionally, or if it just ended up that way, but some of the characters were just too flat.

That aside, I really did enjoy the book. I'd say that in each sitting, I read about 1/4 of the book, so it's a quick read. Any other Whodunnit? fans who have read the book? What did you think? Comments/opinions are always welcome! See you (hopefully) on Monday with my Whodunnit? review, mortals!

5 comments:

  1. I read the book too and liked it a lot. Can't wait until the 2nd one comes out in August.

    Dana would follow the pattern of the book (she's similar to Jacqueline) but I don't think the killer can get the "MVP" award. It's a game show and it has to go by game show rules. The person with the lowest score (they take an unseen written test) gets killed and the highest score is safe.

    My money is on Cris as the killer. She goes with the flow but also subtly creates conflict (like when she told Lindsey to go listen by the door).

    Enjoy the next episode! Ulysses looks like he got poisoned but the snake Geno finds is non-venomous. Should be good.

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  2. Yeah, I talked about the written test in one of my blogs and how it was similar to the mole. I feel like, since the killer doesn't know how the crime was committed, that where ever they fall, whether they're the "winner", merely spared, or scared, they got that on their own. Obviously, though, if they got the lowest score, they wouldn't be eliminated.

    I'm not sure if the Dana-Jacqueline similarities are too obvious, but since the book was written to help us solve the show, the similarities must have some merit. I do, however, think that Cris is still a strong suspect, as well as Lindsey. And maybe Melina simply because how innocent she seems.

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  3. Hmmm. I read an article that the author of the book had no idea who the killer would be on the show (it wasn't even cast yet) so I'm not sure about the book providing clues anymore.

    The real question for me is can the Killer get the "singled out as the strongest performed" Spared card? Cris and Lindsey have both gotten that "award." It would seem odd the Killer would give themselves that award or that ABC would let them.

    Melina's looking more and more likely.

    Looking forward to your next review!



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  4. That makes sense, but they also could've chosen the killer based on the book. That being said, last night's episode clearly proved my theory wrong.

    I believe that the killer could get the "singled out as the strongest" Spared card. Since they don't actually know how the crime was committed, they're putting forth their guesses just as every other guest does. So whoever gets singled out as the best is who actually earned it regardless whether they're the killer or a guest. I think they would have to do that to make the killer look like a genuine guest. If the killer were to win the riddle and not get the winning card, it would look suspicious.

    I agree that Melina is more suspicious for me now. New review will be out later today! Just have to edit!

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  5. I wish the book explained Jacqueline's motivation (unless there isn't any because she's just crazy!) and her back story. I.e. where did she get her money? was she really a nurse? etc. too many loose ends.

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