Part I. Basin Information Title: Windmills of the Gods Author: Sidney Sheldon * (February 11, 1917 – January 30, 2007) was an Academy Award-winning American writer who won award in three careers—a Broadway playwright, a Hollywood TV and movie screenwriter, and a best selling novelist. He is the author of The Other Side of Midnight, Bloodline, A stranger in the Mirror, Rage of Angels , If tomorrow comes and Master of the Fame. All have been number one international bestsellers. His first and only other book, The Naked Facem was acclaimed by the New York Times as “the best first mystery of the year”.

* Copyright ©1987 by Sheldon Literary Trust All rights reserved

* This Warner Books Edition id published by arrangement with William Morrow and Company, Inc., 105 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y 10016

* Cover illustration by Stanislaw Fernandes

* Warner Books, Inc. 666 Fifth Avenue New York, N.Y 10103

* Printed in the United States of America On November, 1987 with 434 pages.

Part II. Characters
A.Major Characters * MARY ASHLEY – A loving mother of Beth and Tim from America’s hearltland, Kansas City. She’s grieving for her lost husband. She’s a brilliant professor learning how to become a tope diplomat and the one person the President is relying on to reform U.S relations with the communist block. * STANTON ROGERs – the presidential foreign affairs adviser. He was also the President’s closest friend at the same time, the Controller of the Patriot for Freedom * MIKE SLADE – the deputy of her mission; the tough career diplomat who can be both tender and cold. And the only person she will have reason to suspect of plotting her death. * LOUIS DEFORGES – a doctor attached to the French embassy; a handsome charmer whom Mary will be tempted to trust body and soul, especially when he saved her life. He’s also a member of The Patriots for Freedom * ANGEL (NUESA MUNEZ) – “The Angel of Death”, the most skilled killer on earth the one the beck and call of the world’s most secret terrorist organization; the one who had the contract to brutally take the live of the new ambassador and her children.
B.Minor Characters * Paul Ellison – The Presidents of the United States of America * Edward Ashley – Mary’s husband. He’s a doctor and believed to die in a car accident. * Ben Cohn – a veteran political reporter * Alexandra lonescu – Romanian President * Marin Groza – Romanian revolutionary leader

Part III. Plot Stanton Rogers was destined to be the President of the United States of America. But because of the controversy of cheating on his wife and fell in love with another woman, the powerful friends who had backed him for the presidency quietly disappeared. They found a new perfect candidate to rule the most powerful nation: Paul Ellison, Stanton’s closest friend. Stanton’s divorce changed everything. It was now Stanton Rogers who became the appendage to Paul Ellison. Four years later Ellison was elected President of the U.S.A and he appointed Stanton as presidential foreign affairs adviser. One of the President’s plans was to re-establish the diplomatic relations between the iron curtain countries and the U.S.A. They approached the government of Romania and its President, Alexandru lonescu and he had agreed to the reestablishment. Ellison needed an ambassador in Romania to represent their country. Stanton was assigned to find the right person for the position and they all served in Eastern and Western European countries, and a few of them had additional experience in the Far East and Africa. In other words they were all qualified. But the president needed someone with a different kind of experience, someone who agreed with his theories, someone like Mary Ashley who had brilliant ideas. She even outlined a detailed plan further than the President’s theory. So, they decided to have Mary to represent their country in Romania and they did anything no matter what it takes just to make her agree. Marin Groza was a revolutionary leader and he was preparing a coup against Alexandru lonescu. He didn’t want to seek vengeance to Romania for killing his family. He wanted to go back to free his people. The unknown organization decided to assassinate him because his plan could destroy their plans. It would open many bridges to the west. So, they hired the most talented and very expensive killer, Angel. She known and disguised as an ordinary fat black woman by the name of Nuesa Muñez and so she killed Groza in her own unique way. Mary was shocked and flattered at the same time when the President himself called and offered her the position. She could see the look of total disbelief on her husband’s facem, Edward but she felt that maybe Edward could have been more realistic. In some way, she also felt that Edward envied her. He wondered why not they should have chosen him instead of Mary. He just said that he cannot leave his practice and walk out on his patients. He couldn’t go somewhere else like Romania. So, as a wife, she would never leave him and practically refused the offer. Edward died in a car accident. Ben Cohn, a veteran reporter who outlined the whole thing happened in Mary’s life. Especially the press buildup she had. She seemed so famous and there was someone behind everything. Someone must set her up including her husband’s death. It had to be someone important and Ben was on his way to find it but he was killed. After her husband’s death, Mary had no one to turn to. She loved the man so much but she must continue to live. Somehow, she was also thinking her children’s education and future. So, she decide to accept the nomination for the ambassadorship. Fortunately, she was elected by the committee and became the new ambassador in Romania. She went through a lot of things bit she learned so fast. After a short training and orientation, Mary together with her children moved to Romania. Practically, they welcomed and accepted her. Other had their reservations also including the Romanian President himself but Mary was so nice and clever, she befriended him. She helped to save his son from a deadly virus. In that way, lonescu would no longer be a hindrance for her plans/ At first, Mary and Mike Slade, her deputy chief of mission really didn’t like each other. They started on the wrong foot. In fact, Mary hated him for being so arrogant and cold at times. She had the feeling he didn’t like her too. In the process of performing the task of being a good ambassador, she met Louis Deforges, a doctor and a widow too. In fact, they had lots of things in common. She liked him and the feeling was mutual. The feeling grew deeper especially when he saved her life so many times. She trusted the man body and soul. One day, she found out that Mike had been poisoning herm not in a fatal way. She was sick and Louis told her that someone must have poisoned her. She thought Mike, they drank coffee every morning. It had been their morning session and she found out that Mike put some arsenic in her coffee and it made her sick. Louis talked to Mike and argued about the poisoning happened to Mary. They both knew that she was not supposed to die in that way. Their controller had a better idea for her death and they were also look outs and members of the unknown organization. Louis was there just to look out for Mary and made sure that she was not going anywhere. It’s part of his job but that night after their conversation, Mike killed Louis. Mike was with the CIA. He started to get on the trail of the organization. They thought he was on their side and invited him to join. He poisoned Mary just to get sick enough so that she’d have to leave Romania. All the time, he’s just trying to save her life. There was a threat that during the party Mary was to attend, Angel will assassinate her and the kids. The whole Romanian security staff made very possible way to secure her. Mike Slade checked every possible way that Angel was to kill Mary. He anticipated the happenings so they could find solutions and prevent Mary dying. Angel was so skilled in killing and very intelligent but protagonists were more intelligent than her. They found out during the party that Angel was filling the balloons with propane, oxygen-acetylene and phosphorus. When the balloons exploded the thermal effect would destroy all of them. Before it could happen they found solutions to it that it would not harm anybody. They found out that the controller of the unknown organization was Stanton Rogers, He was behind Mary all the way seeing to it that she got a buildup in the press, making sure that she were seen in all the right places by the right people. It’s part of his plan to destroy Ellison. He never forgave Ellison for that if the government got involved with iron curtain countries like Romania, the Communists will destroy them. So they must have done something to prevent it. A group of powerful men on both sides had formed a super secret alliance called Patriots for Freedom. Because of Angel’s failure to assassinate the ambassador, Stanton was so mad and insulted her. He underestimated her talent. The next day, Stanton’s head was found in a Washington D.C garbage dump. Mary and Mike were starting to like each other and they were still knowing each other.

Part IV. Analysis of the Element (character) One of the elements of the novel is the character and the main character and the heroine of the story was the loving mother named Mary Ashley from Kansas City. She was like any other woman who had dreams and desires. She was just an ordinary citizen who taught political science in a university, she’s a loving wife to her husband Edward and she adored the man so much. Even after all the years, he’s still the most attractive man she’s ever known. Even after his death. She was an understanding and very patient mother to her son and daughter. In other words, she was simple but the best wife and mother to her family. When she was appointed by the president as the ambassador in Romania, her life changed in so many ways. Her way of living changed her outlook and even her goal. She became powerful and famous but had no freedom but she was a woman with dignity and pride. In spite of the abrupt changes in her life, she still chose to be strong and learned to fit in her new environment. She was smart hat she was able to deal with the Romanian President in spite of being communist. Dealing with him is like dealing with your own death, so Mary was careful to manage him. In fact, she even saved his son’s life. She helped many Jews and so many others. The author was able to convey a very versatile character yet so vulnerable. Mary entered the world of politics not for her but for the goodness of everybody and that she may able to live without her husband. She missed the man so much. She’s also a woman conquered by emotions sometimes but she managed to move on. Dealing with her coming death and knowing that someone wanted to kill her was not an easy thing. She felt like walking in the shadow of her own death and she didn’t know when and where she was about to die. She felt so helpless. She had nothing left to turn to except herself. She could not trust anybody but at the end of the day, she still managed to stand up and faces whatever the consequences of her doings. She could not blame anybody. She had nothing to blame because she has known nothing. Somehow she still prayed for her safety and her children. I know that there was no ending in the story. Mary’s life still continues and her journey still goes on as ambassador in Romania but this time, she now had someone who will be there for her every trial. Mary was just human being who had lost and loved someone and fear death and she knew it’s inevitable and timeless but whatever it is, she knew she would still survive.