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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
Picoult likes to write about interesting ethical and moral dilemmas. Having read a few of her books, the contents of this one did not really surprise me, although utilizing the Amish as a backdrop added a lot of nuance. I vaguely remember watching a movie based off of this book at one time, but honestly had forgotten a lot of the plot, so this was a whole new surprise reading for me.
Katie is in trouble, Ellie is looking to bail her out. Not having previously met, even though they're distant relations, Ellie is swept in when Katie is accused of murdering her baby. To make matters difficult, despite obvious signs, Katie has denied she was ever pregnant at all. Weaving through the actual truth, and working against a culture that Ellie is not used to leaves a lot of issues for Ellie to handle, especially since she herself isn't convinced of Katie's innocence.
Ellie is a bit brash, but overall a likable character. She is conflicted and it really makes her easy to relate to, especially when you can empathize with her situation and her trouble aligning her career with her morals. Katie is a bit harder; not necessarily because she's Amish, but because the book sets you up to question your trust in her. There's a few love interests in the book, for Katie they make sense, for Ellie they are a bit distracting although I suppose it carries the story along.
As much as I like Picoult, this book was just harder to sink into. You have all these characters lying; which is part of the story and important, but at a certain point it can be frustrating. You've got rapid emotions going everywhere. You've got a twist ending (and that's all I'm saying on that). I guess maybe there was just a bit too much going on for me and a lot of stuff got drawn out that probably didn't need to be.
Interesting moral read if you want to debate ethics, what-ifs, and a mystery, but I think I prefer some of Picoult's other works.
Review by M. Reynard 2020
Katie is in trouble, Ellie is looking to bail her out. Not having previously met, even though they're distant relations, Ellie is swept in when Katie is accused of murdering her baby. To make matters difficult, despite obvious signs, Katie has denied she was ever pregnant at all. Weaving through the actual truth, and working against a culture that Ellie is not used to leaves a lot of issues for Ellie to handle, especially since she herself isn't convinced of Katie's innocence.
Ellie is a bit brash, but overall a likable character. She is conflicted and it really makes her easy to relate to, especially when you can empathize with her situation and her trouble aligning her career with her morals. Katie is a bit harder; not necessarily because she's Amish, but because the book sets you up to question your trust in her. There's a few love interests in the book, for Katie they make sense, for Ellie they are a bit distracting although I suppose it carries the story along.
As much as I like Picoult, this book was just harder to sink into. You have all these characters lying; which is part of the story and important, but at a certain point it can be frustrating. You've got rapid emotions going everywhere. You've got a twist ending (and that's all I'm saying on that). I guess maybe there was just a bit too much going on for me and a lot of stuff got drawn out that probably didn't need to be.
Interesting moral read if you want to debate ethics, what-ifs, and a mystery, but I think I prefer some of Picoult's other works.
Review by M. Reynard 2020
Jodi Picoult is an amazing storyteller. This book is very interesting and very well written. I learned a lot about the Amish. Highly recommend.
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It took me a while to get through this book, mainly because I was reading it during November and was at the same time writing a novel for National Novel Writing Month (I wrote about 137,000 words in 30 days, a hefty distraction from reading). But I finally finished it today, December 1, and as per usual with Jodi Picoult books I enjoyed it.
The truth didn't come out until almost the last page, and to me at least it wasn't an obvious outcome, but it wasn't exactly a huge twist either. I really enjoy Picoult's writing and this novel was no exception. The thing I find with these books is that they're easy to read but at the same time they're well written. I like that!
The truth didn't come out until almost the last page, and to me at least it wasn't an obvious outcome, but it wasn't exactly a huge twist either. I really enjoy Picoult's writing and this novel was no exception. The thing I find with these books is that they're easy to read but at the same time they're well written. I like that!
I really loved this book, I think that Jodi is becoming one of my favorite authors. She has such a beautiful way of writing unique stories, stories that are so deeply touching and profound and yet heartbreaking at the same time.
I think for me, my only criticism would be the ending. I knew very early on that Katie didn’t kill her baby. I think for me, a more touching ending would have been to see Aaron have done it—having lost one child already secretly unwilling to lose another despite his outward appearance of being cold and unwilling to budge and move in his religious convictions. To be, having Sarah having done it wasn’t surprising at all. There’s nothing shocking about what a mother would do to protect her child.
But overall, the book was so well written, and as someone who knew next to nothing about the Amish way of life, it was interesting to learn more about their culture and way of life for sure.
I think for me, my only criticism would be the ending. I knew very early on that Katie didn’t kill her baby. I think for me, a more touching ending would have been to see Aaron have done it—having lost one child already secretly unwilling to lose another despite his outward appearance of being cold and unwilling to budge and move in his religious convictions. To be, having Sarah having done it wasn’t surprising at all. There’s nothing shocking about what a mother would do to protect her child.
But overall, the book was so well written, and as someone who knew next to nothing about the Amish way of life, it was interesting to learn more about their culture and way of life for sure.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
hopeful
fast-paced
emotional
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
sad
medium-paced