By: Nora Roberts

BLUE SMOKE

Created By: Allison Bender

This is the beginning minor conflict that will eventually be the main cause to the major conflict. In this scene, Reena’s family watches their family inherited restaurant, Sirico’s, burn away to almost nothing. This event shows you how close the family is and what they value in life. While watching her parents reactions to the fire, Reena starts to see why her parents are crying. This event during her childhood leads Reena to the life and career she wants to engage her self in.

“Her mother’s heart was an excited drumbeat against her ear. She started to turn her head, to look up, to ask if the could get closer. Just a little closer. But it wasn’t excitement on her mother’s face. It wasn’t wonder that shone in her eyes, but tears. Beside her, Dad stood with his hand on her shoulder. And to Reena’s horror, she saw there were tears in his eyes, too. It wasn’t a movie, it was real. Something of theirs, something that had been theirs all of her life, was burning away right in front of her. She could look beyond the hypnotic light and movement of the fire now, she could see the black smears on the walls of Sirico’s, the grime and wet soot staining the white marble steps, the jagged shards of glass.”(pg. 10)

“She watched the police take Joey Pastorelli away, much as they had his father. But he didn’t keep his head lowered, and his eyes had a vicious glee in them. It was one of the last things she remembered with absolute clarity during those long, hot weeks of August when summer was ending and her childhood was over. She remembered the glee in Joey’s eyes, the strut in his walk as they took him to the police car. And she remembered the smears of blood, his own dog’s blood, staining his hands.” (pg. 45)

In this passage the Author, Nora Roberts, uses a great deal of foreshadowing. First she hints at how Joey is following his fathers foot steps by getting himself arrested; just as his father did. But she also shows how he is different from his father. Joey did not hang his head in shame or embarrassment. He walked off with pride, thinking he was just like his father, and proud of it. And the last thing she hints at is the this won’t be the last time Reena encounters him. These are the last things she remembers about that summer and the one the sticks out a lot is how Joey looked when they took him away.

At this point we are at the end of the story were the conflict is finally resolved. Reena is watching the man that has stalked her all of her life, burn away to nothing. As she watches, a weight is lifted off of her shoulders. She can now move on with her life, not having to worry and be held back from the things she really wants.

“He was screaming now-horrible, inhuman sounds as he spun around the room. Fire embraced him. She saw, thought she saw, and would always see, his eyes locked on hers through the flames that consumed his face. Somehow he walked toward her. One step, then two, toward the doorway. Then he fell, with fire rolling over him like a molten sea.”(pg. 435)

This scene isn’t really part of the main conflict, but I still consider it an important scene. Reena is kind of use to death because she lost a loved one while she was young and in college. This event shows how far Reena has come; But also it shows how death can be completely unexpected-like a slap in the face-or it can be expected to come soon giving people time to prepare.

“Death might come simply, but its aftermath was invariably complicated. Reena did what she could, contacting the priest while Bo called his father. In a little desk in the spare room, papers were competently organized in a file drawer. Insurance, burial plot, a copy of the will, the deed to the house, the title to the aging Chevy Reena learned Marge Goodnight had driven to church and the grocery store.”(pg. 213)

Nora Roberts uses descriptive language to portray what Reena is seeing as she enters a house; the upstairs is on fire. She makes the reader imagine the sight in their mind, almost as if they were seeing it themselves.

“There was light, the backwash from the street, silver slivers of moon. Shadows and silhouettes that were furniture and doorways, all swept with eyes and weapons while her heart galloped at the base of her throat.”(pg. 420-421)

“The room was blazing, a small mouth of hell. Fire plumed from the floor, clawed up the dresser where a vase of flowers was already engulfed. For a heartbeat she stood surrounded by it, its brilliance and fantastic heat, the colors and movement and power.”(pg. 420)

This is in the same scene as the previous slide. Reena has reached the upstairs where the fire is at and stops for just a moment to take it in. Nora Roberts has again used descriptive language to show the reader exactly what is one fire in the room so they can see what Reena sees.

In this scene, Reena is standing with her family watching their restaurant burn as the firemen try to save it. This is important because Later in the story Reena will be doing almost exactly what the firemen are doing.

“Something exploded, and there were more screams in response. Firemen in helmets, faces blackened by the smoke and ash, moved like ghost in the haze of smoke. Like soldiers, she thought. It sounded like a war movie.”(pg. 9)

“Then there was Mama, rushing out of their house, leaving the door open wide behind her. Mama, running down the sidewalk to her, as she had once when she fell off her bike and sprained her wrist. And when her mother’s arms cane around her, tight, tight, tight, it all became real. Standing on the sidewalk, held by her mother and brother, Reena drowned in tears.”(pg. 96)

The author sort of uses a flashback to show that Mama has always been there when Reena was hurt. The author also uses the words: tight, tight, tight; And the phrase, drowned in tears. These words and phrases add to the dramatic effect and increases the feel of emotion the reader has. These things show how the family is very close and care for each other deeply.

The author has Reena looking at her reflection in the mirror. What Reena see’s is a woman doing a man’s job. Using words like authority and confidence, show that the author values women’s rights. The reader is shown how anybody can do anything they want. And at the end of the day every one is still human.

“The reflection in the mirror caught her eye, made her stop, study herself. Maybe she didn’t look particularly female in the uniform, but she liked the image she projected. Authority and confidence. Though there’d been a moment on the street today when she’d gotten a jolt, actively realized how easy it could be to be hurt.”(pg. 125)

“Whatever she found out, she thought, a man a good man one she’d kissed good-bye less than twenty four hours before, was dead. And Once again fire haunted her life.”(pg. 129)

This is small but the author puts in that last sentence to have the reader asking questions about why the fire keeps haunting her. It also kind of foreshadows that this isn’t the last time she is going to encounter the fire. One more thing the author does is put the phrase, a good man, between dashes. She does this because it not only adds to the dramatic effect, but also shows how when ever Reena gets something good in her life, the fire takes it away from her.

Nora Roberts purpose for writing the novel “Blue Smoke” was to inspire. She wants readers to see that even small things can

affect your life long-term; just like the first fire changed Reena’s whole career path. She also wants her readers to see how important family is. She creates a huge family that sticks

together through think and thin no matter what the cost. And lastly she wants to show how in the long run, you will come to

that point in your life where you are completely happy with every aspect of your life. In the end of the story Reena was free of her past following her for the rest of her life, and still had a

strong family, and also the man of her dreams. In the end, Nora Roberts wants readers to not be afraid to do what they want to do. You should go out in the world and discover yourself, and

learn to face any ghosts from the past. And simply just be happy.

PURPOSE

The End