These days when a reader settles in to read a book, it is hard to know what to expect. In the past, there may have been a more rigid idea about what makes a novel or a story, now, there are many ways in which a modern writer can choose to portray a happening or a feeling. This development in fiction writing creates an exciting concept. It turns reading into a wonderfully intriguing activity where nothing can be completely assumed. As a result of this, there is an air of mystery to reading contemporary fiction. Add to this elusive mix, a book which is presented as "a mystery", or, a novel which has a plot that has large elements of confusion or mystery. Now, for a reader, not only is reading and following the narrative an experience of exploration and detection, but, the plot of the narrative is a story of unanswered questions. In Cold Blood , a mystery and a work of modern fiction is a novel through which this combination of elements can be explored and Beloved, by Toni Morrison, is a nearly extreme example of this concept of modern, mysterious, narrative. Both of these works, can act as a lens through which to view contemporary, mysterious fiction. Not only do t

As a narrative, Beloved is baffling on an even more basic level than that of In Cold Blood. While reading, there is often a simple question as to what is going on. This seems to be nearly the ultimate play on a reader.

' Good Grief, Kenyon! I hear you.'

On a larger scale, as a work presented as a "true account", In Cold Blood raises very interesting and baffling issues. What is true, what is fictionalized? How do we as readers approach what we are being told, when we are unsure about what it is?

...and there it was again. The welcoming cool of unchisled headstones, the one she selected to lean against on tiptoe, her knees wide open as any grave. Pink as fingernail it was, and sprinkled with glittering chips. Ten minutes, he said, you got ten minutes I'll do it for free.

In another work, a reader could easily read and digest this passage. But, due to the delicate category of In Cold Blood, it is not so simple. These people were real, their relationships did exist, but what are the chances that Capote reasearched this phone conversation? It is hard to critique a work of fiction for it's content if it's content may be truth, likewise, it is hard to examine the story and the crime if it's facts maybe be fiction. To even touch on these thoughts can be overwhelming. This is the fashion in which the narrative; the telling as a whole, is a mystery on a wider level.

In America, mysteries and scandals are forms which our society has become accustomed to. We are familiar with "good guys" and "bad guys", with police stations and villains being read their rights, even with violence. We expect certain ingredients in a conflict and we expect certain outcomes. While reading In Cold Blood, these expectations are played with. The crime is senseless, the victims were near perfect, the killers are random and the d

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Approximate Word count = 1247
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)