Reviews

A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult

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rachel526's review against another edition

2.0

Very different for Jodi Picoult in terms of organization. Interesting at times, but too many random storylines that made me wonder how they were relevant.

fleurs24's review against another edition

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4.0

Heavy topic. So many opinions. Relevant to our time.

beccasbooks234's review against another edition

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challenging emotional

5.0

A gunman, George Goddard, takes hostages at the Center. Every hour we find out more about the gunman and each of the hostages, which include an abortion doctor, a nurse, an elderly woman, a teenager and her aunt, and two women with opposing views. As time moves in reverse, we catch glimpses of each of their lives and what brought them to the moment they were staring down the barrel of a gun.
This book is so hard to review because the topics are so difficult to talk about. Abortion, racism, even gun control, are still things that, to this day, are argued about.
I liked that the story was told in reverse. That’s something you don’t ordinarily see in a book so it makes it unique and interesting. I couldn’t put it down, wanting to know more about the characters and what drove them all to this particular moment in time.
Even though the topics were difficult to read about, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. The twists and turns we find out made me audibly gasp at times, especially towards the end of the book.
I would recommend this book to anyone but I would have to give some trigger warnings about some of the tough topics talked about.

jessicareadsmanybooks's review

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challenging emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

ejperotto's review against another edition

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3.0

I normally really enjoy Jodi Picoult books but this one really fell flat for me.
I enjoyed and empathized with some of the characters but didn’t feel personally invested in their journeys. This story is told backwards so you know much of what happens up front and learn more details about each character’s day as you progress backwards in time. I enjoyed learning more and more about the characters as we move from the end to the beginning of the day but still didn’t feel connected to them. I usually enjoy this reverse chronology story telling but this time I didn’t feel any tension or anything drawing me deeper into the story. I did enjoy the couple light “twists” toward the end but don’t think they were redeeming enough for me to recommend this to someone else an as enjoyable read.