hesticht's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Rape, Death of parent, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Toxic relationship
livlosiewicz's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Pros:
•Reading this, it’s not surprising that Picoult bloomed into an amazing bestselling author. The bones of her main writing strengths are there
•I love a multiple POV story, and I thought the perspectives weaved together well. The characters are very flawed, but getting each perspective allowed me to empathize
•I liked that Rebecca’s timeline went in reverse (I actually thought it worked better here than in her most recent novel, Mad Honey). I think this allowed us to have a more favorable view of Hadley and a more mature view of Rebecca. I also really liked getting the same scene from multiple perspectives; this was a really cool way to explore different aspects of the story
•I love it when a book makes me think, and this one certainly did
Cons:
•you can tell this is an early book for her because some things didn’t quite land. I love flawed characters, but I basically disliked all of them (I liked only Sam at the end), even though I empathized with them
•Too many creepy relationships. Joley’s love for Jane was SO unnecessarily creepy
•Hadley and Rebecca’s relationship is literally illegal and sorry, but I can’t agree that he’s a great guy if he would do that to a child, even if they loved each other. I didn’t like that the main argument here was whether they loved each other as opposed to whether it was appropriate
Recommendation: I recommend to those who like character driven stories with imperfect characters. This isn’t Jodi Picoult’s best, so if you’re looking to give her a try, try a more recent book (and if you're just a medium fan, maybe skip this one). Overall, I enjoyed this book and thought it was an interesting exploration of these characters, but a few inappropriate relationships soured it slightly for me. Check your trigger warnings before reading!
•Reading this, it’s not surprising that Picoult bloomed into an amazing bestselling author. The bones of her main writing strengths are there
•I love a multiple POV story, and I thought the perspectives weaved together well. The characters are very flawed, but getting each perspective allowed me to empathize
•I liked that Rebecca’s timeline went in reverse (I actually thought it worked better here than in her most recent novel, Mad Honey). I think this allowed us to have a more favorable view of Hadley and a more mature view of Rebecca. I also really liked getting the same scene from multiple perspectives; this was a really cool way to explore different aspects of the story
•I love it when a book makes me think, and this one certainly did
Cons:
•you can tell this is an early book for her because some things didn’t quite land. I love flawed characters, but I basically disliked all of them (I liked only Sam at the end), even though I empathized with them
•Too many creepy relationships. Joley’s love for Jane was SO unnecessarily creepy
•Hadley and Rebecca’s relationship is literally illegal and sorry, but I can’t agree that he’s a great guy if he would do that to a child, even if they loved each other. I didn’t like that the main argument here was whether they loved each other as opposed to whether it was appropriate
Recommendation: I recommend to those who like character driven stories with imperfect characters. This isn’t Jodi Picoult’s best, so if you’re looking to give her a try, try a more recent book (and if you're just a medium fan, maybe skip this one). Overall, I enjoyed this book and thought it was an interesting exploration of these characters, but a few inappropriate relationships soured it slightly for me. Check your trigger warnings before reading!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Pedophilia, and Incest
Moderate: Death
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