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A review by smderitis
Mercy by Jodi Picoult
3.0
I love Jodi Picoult's work. It never ceases to entertain me or grip my emotions. It also never fails to keep me on the edge of my seat and heavily question my own opinions and morals.
Mercy was no different. Trying to decide if love is an overpowering, acceptable reason to kill your ailing spouse was an interesting concept, one that I do not think I would have thought as hard about if I had not read this book.
The relationship of Jamie and Maggie is the one that everyone dreams of finding. It is honest, endearing, smitten, deep, but most of all, it is rooted in trust. So much trust, in fact, that Maggie trusts her husband to fulfill her final wish, and suffer from the chain of events that will inevitably follow. To hear Jamie's story of suffering through his wife's illness, suffering through her "mercy" killing, and then through the court case to decide his future is pain-stakingly hard for those who believe that love conquers all, but the story line will leave you on the edge of your seat.
Some sections, though, may leave you a bit dazed. During descriptions of Carrymuir, the homeland of the MacDonald clan, and the history behind their ancestry, I must admit that I got a little bored. While the information is necessary to understand their bond and influence over those that surround them, I sometimes found myself confused or wondering if these sections would be worth the length that they encompassed.
For the majority of the novel, I found myself perpetually angry at Cam for the choices he makes in his marriage. I found myself on the side of his wife, Allie, hoping for the best, but always hoping she'd stand up for herself. The final scene, in the kitchen with the grape juice, left me to wonder what was down the road for them. And while I like open ended endings that leave the reader to fill some of the pieces, that was not a piece I wanted left out.
Overall, I enjoyed the book. As with all of Jodi Picoult's works, I enjoyed the court scenes the most, as they are vivid, quick, enticing, emotion pulling and thought provoking. Even though this isn't my favorite by Picoult, I still recommend it to anyone who holds an interest.
Mercy was no different. Trying to decide if love is an overpowering, acceptable reason to kill your ailing spouse was an interesting concept, one that I do not think I would have thought as hard about if I had not read this book.
The relationship of Jamie and Maggie is the one that everyone dreams of finding. It is honest, endearing, smitten, deep, but most of all, it is rooted in trust. So much trust, in fact, that Maggie trusts her husband to fulfill her final wish, and suffer from the chain of events that will inevitably follow. To hear Jamie's story of suffering through his wife's illness, suffering through her "mercy" killing, and then through the court case to decide his future is pain-stakingly hard for those who believe that love conquers all, but the story line will leave you on the edge of your seat.
Some sections, though, may leave you a bit dazed. During descriptions of Carrymuir, the homeland of the MacDonald clan, and the history behind their ancestry, I must admit that I got a little bored. While the information is necessary to understand their bond and influence over those that surround them, I sometimes found myself confused or wondering if these sections would be worth the length that they encompassed.
For the majority of the novel, I found myself perpetually angry at Cam for the choices he makes in his marriage. I found myself on the side of his wife, Allie, hoping for the best, but always hoping she'd stand up for herself. The final scene, in the kitchen with the grape juice, left me to wonder what was down the road for them. And while I like open ended endings that leave the reader to fill some of the pieces, that was not a piece I wanted left out.
Overall, I enjoyed the book. As with all of Jodi Picoult's works, I enjoyed the court scenes the most, as they are vivid, quick, enticing, emotion pulling and thought provoking. Even though this isn't my favorite by Picoult, I still recommend it to anyone who holds an interest.