ANALYSIS OF CATHERINE COULTER’S TAILSPIN

TailSpin is a 'thriller' fictional novel that has an episodic plot structure

thereby starting 'in media res'. Omniscient point of view is the narrative present in
the novel TailSpin. The narrator assumes the position of 'God's. He presents the
thoughts of all the characters. "How had they drugged her? For a moment she
couldn't think, couldn't remember what she had eaten or drunk earlier. The wine,
she thought, the bottle of red on the table that she'd opened. Where had it come
from? She didn't know..... " (1:3). This excerpt shows what was going through
Rachael's mind as she swam out of the lake she was thrown in to drown. The
narrator reveals here that she was drugged from the bottle of wine she drank.
"He wasn't bad looking, Sherlock thought dispassionately. He looked like a man
who'd been ridden hard and put away wet too many times in his short years.... "
(Ch 27, pg 163). This excerpt shows the thought of Sherlock as the agents
apprehended one of the assassins that tried to kill Racheal.
It was set in the 21st century and many normal places where used in the novel. The
main setting being Washington, D.C. Parlow, Kentucky also was one of the major
settings. This was where Rachael Abbot saved agent Crowne's life from the crash.
Other minor settings are: Baltimore Maryland, Jamaica, Georgetown, etc.

The story revolved round Rachael Abbot who narrowly escaped

drowning by assailants who drugged her, tied her to a cement block and threw her
into a lake. She witnessed the crash of FBI special agent Jackson Crowne who was
flying renowned psychiatrist Dr. Timothy MacLean to Washinton D.C., to protect
him and discover who was trying to kill him.
Agent Crowne barely manages to bring his Cessna down and haul the unconscious
Dr. Maclean from the wreckage before it explodes. Rachael managed to save both
of them before the arrival of Agent Savich and Agent Sherlock, an FBI couple that
control the Criminal Apprehension Unit (CAU), they found out that the plane was
brought down by a bomb. Continuous investigation shows that one of Dr.
MacLean’s patients was the culprit to the reason being that the doctor has been
diagnosed with a pernicious disease that makes its victim say whatever comes to
mind with no regard of the consequences. Dr. MacLean has compromised doctor-
patient confidentiality and one of his patients was trying to kill him.
Rachael, they soon discovered that she’s the bastard daughter of Senator James
Abbot, who was killed in a car accident three weeks before. With the aid of the
agents, The climax of the story happened when Rachael was kidnapped by Quincy
and Laurel Abbot, her father's siblings. The timely intervention by Agent Savich
and Crowne brought an end to the terrors. It was later found out it was her father’s
lawyer and his two siblings planned all the assassination attempts because of his
wealth.
A brewing romance is seen at the end of the novel as Rachael and Crowne grows
closer in their relationship.

Rachael Abbot can be said to be a round character and also the

protagonist as the story revolves around her and her ordeals in overcoming murder
attempts. She is a beautiful young woman in her late twenties who recently
discovered that her biological father was a Senator. Her father, James Abbot took
her in with open arms and wasn't surprised she was his daughter. They only got to
be together for three weeks before James Abbot passed away from a car accident
which didn't sit well with Racheal. She believed that her father couldn't have
driven a car by himself because of his condition and he wasn't drinking because he
had stopped drinking. She believed his siblings killed him because of her coming
to his life. Racheal is portrayed by the author to be a strong woman who can
undergo many ordeals and near death challenges, a woman who is capable of
shooting a man who tried to kill her and her loved ones. Her strengths made her
admirable to Agent Crowne who saw the beautiful young woman as fearless and
courageous.
Jackson Crowne is one of the major characters in the story. He's a special agent
responsible for protecting Dr. MacLean and he also protected Racheal Abbot from
many murder attempt to her life. After Racheal saved him from the crash, he stood
by her side and never left her side as he made sure that all attempts on Racheal's
life didn't succeed. The author portrays agent Crowne as a handsome man who's
got the strength and intelligence in solving any problems that comes his way. "He
already faced more horrific situations than most agents do in a lifetime. He burned
out no wonder, but instead of leaving the FBI, he transferred to the CAU unit."
(Ch6 pg 30).
Agent Savich and Agent Sherlock are also major characters. They are married FBI
special agents who are in charge of the Criminal Apprehension Unit (CAU). They
work together on every assignment and came to the rescue of Agent Crowne. The
author portrayed them as a strong united force that conquers all difficulties
together. Their marriage is seen as a happy one blessed with a boy named Sean
who's shielded from the brutal day to day experience they have while chasing
criminals. They were the first to discover that Racheal is hiding something and
with their persuasive skills made Racheal reveal her true identity. With their aid,
Rachael and Crowne solve the mystery of the people behind the murder attempts
on Rachael.
Laurel and Quincy Abbot are the antagonists who planned the murder attempts of
Rachael Abbot. The duo are Senator James Abbot's siblings who refuse to accept
Racheal as their brother's daughter. They planned their brother's untimely death
and also hired assassins to kill Racheal but they kept failing. They fabricated
another will of their brother by removing Racheal from the will with the help of his
lawyer all because of their brother's wealth. After different failed attempts to
Rachael's life they decided to kidnap her alongside agent Sherlock who was with
her then. The timely arrival of agent Savich and Crowne brought an end to the
terrors.
Dr. MacLean is a minor character who has pernicious disease that makes its victim
say whatever comes to mind with no regard of the consequences. This disease
made MacLean to compromise the doctor-patient confidentiality, and one of his
patients was presumed to shut him up. It was later found out that it was the
proclaimed dead son of one of his patients that was responsible for the attempts on
his life. The culprit, when he was to be apprehended, jumped head on into the
cliffs.
MacLean, unfortunately took his life by shooting himself on the head on his
hospital bed. This misfortune was taken hard by the agents as they had a soft spot
for him.

The major theme in the novel is the ambitious greed for wealth shown by
the Abbot siblings. Their greed for wealth made them kill their brother and they
were almost successful at killing Rachael, their brother's daughter, all because of
wealth. They weren't satisfied with the asset left for them by their father. Another
theme is unrelenting love and loyalty. The strong love Rachael had for her father
made her get to the bottom of the matter. She made sure her suspicions were
correct about her father's siblings as the culprits responsible for his death.
Also, her love for her first home in Parlow, Kentucky, made her head there for
solace and protection.
Other minor themes are hatred, betrayal, death, conspiracy etc.
The novel is an example of popular literature as it hooks the reader into
finding out what happens in the end. It is an entertaining thriller novel that relaxes
the reader's mind and broadens the reader's imagination.