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The claw

Norah Lofts

1981186 pagesabout 3–4 hours
1981
first published
  • 1981Doubleday · 186 pages · ENG
  • 1981Hodder & Stoughton · 220 pages · ENGISBN 9780340264096
  • 1982Doubleday · 186 pages · ENGISBN 9780385175821
  • 1982Hodder & Stoughton · 224 pages · ENGISBN 9780340281048
  • 1983Ulverscroft · 368 pages · ENGISBN 9780708910450
  • 1988Tor BooksISBN 9780812585254
  • 1988Tor Books · ENGISBN 9780812521160

A small town in Suffolk finds itself under siege when it is terrorized by a macabre and brutal rapist. "The man was a loving husband and father, however outside his home he personified evil with each rape that he committed. The only thing that each victim can remember is the claw that he uses during each attack. With each brutal or deadly attack that is committed, police and the townspeople are terrified that they might be next..." *[From "Softwear" at GoodReads.com.]* Some critics have called this novel anti-feminist because Lofts shifts the focus of the subject [rape] from the victim to the wider impact on the community at large; how it alters perceptions of social responsibility and acceptable behavior. She expands to demonstrate economic shifts as well, such as how the fear of being on the street at night benefits taxi companies yet dampens business for local bars and restaurants.

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