Pajiba

I'll preface this by saying I haven't read this in years, and so my memory could be a little off, but:

I hated this book. Well, I hated the ending, as I hate the majority of Picoult's endings as they rarely add up as they should, instead throwing in some twist that doesn't fit with the evidence that has been laid out for the rest of the book.

But this one takes the cake. I don't know how to say why without going off on a spoilerific rant, and do we do spoilers here, I forget?

Anyway, it's manipulative and ridiculous and one of the reasons I stopped reading her books. That's probably enough for me to say.

OK, well since you asked, and spoilers in case.

The thing is, he killed her. Sure she asked him to, she wanted to die, but he did it and he isn't punished for it. And that pissed me off. They set it up (as I remember it) as though he'll go to prison, but he doesn't. He goes home and sits in his room and mopes about how Emily never really loved him. Well boo frickin hoo. You killed someone. I hope you feel bad about it you schmuck.

I found it very hard to have any kind of sympathy for Chris. He didn't think to say to someone - his parents, her parents, anyone - 'Hey, Em wants to kill herself, should we maybe do something about that?'

It's also difficult to understand why Emily feels the way she does. Yes some explanation is given, but not enough so you truly feel the pain she is in. It was hard to get into her head. Also, how selfish is it to ask someone else to shoot you? You want to die so badly do it yourself, don't leave them to pick up the pieces.

Basically, most of the characters have no redeeming qualities. If they'd come out from up their own backsides for ten minutes, half of what went on could have been avoided.

End spoilers

Phew. I think I've been holding that in since I read the damn thing.

Thanks Carrie. I'm glad it was a bit cathartic for you.

And it does sound like one of those books I'd just end up throwing across the room (see Anna Quindlen - Rise and Shine) ten pages from the end.

Nicely articulated review. With that said, I too read this book years ago and actively despised it, for all the reasons Carrie so eloquently laid out, plus the fact that Picoult's prose was so -- I dunno, I found it simultaneously wooden and overwrought, which is a neat trick if you can pull it off, so I guess she deserves credit for that, at least. I have no idea how this book stacks up against her twenty zillion others, because I refuse to read one word of her others. I'm not sure I've ever been so turned off by an author on the basis of a single work. Seriously, I came away from this one saying "A high school student could write this story better, and probably has."

Emily and Chris's relationship really got me..

This is the only Picoult book I've read and I honestly don't want to read another one. I feel like (from what I've heard) its the same setup for every one.

I agree with Carrie.

Nice work Nicole.

I literally just finished My Sister's Keeper and I will not read another Picoult novel. The first third I was genuinely interested in the characters and the issues at hand but her ridiculous melodrama and unraveling character depth, not to mention the irritating plot twist (which seems par for the course with her), left me more pissed off than emotionally affected. And what's with the mom dusting off her decades old law degree to represent herself?! Why in the hell would you even if you could? If the 13 year-old daughter can get a lawyer pro bono surely the parents can too! So stupid.

Unlike most people, I absolutely loved The Pact! It is my favorite book and I have also read My Sister's Keeper and Nineteen Minutes.

The Pact really interested me and I truly felt sorry for Chris because he loved Emily so much more than she loved him and he realized that when it was too late. I wanted to bash in Emily's head for being so selfish and not even caring about Chris! I wish this book would have talked a little more about Chris's relationship with his parents. I also don't think Picoult should have added Kate as a character because there is no reason and takes away from the book in my opinion.

I absolutely hated Nineteen Minutes! I read it after reading The Pact and that's probably what set me off. They brought back Jordan McAfee, Thomas McAfee, and Selena Damascus but years into the future and everything was so different. The book also dealt with a teenage boy being imprisoned and I just could not handle this after reading The Pact. I guess I got so used to everything being one way and then it all just changed. I also didn't really feel any of the characters in this book.

My Sister's Keeper was the first Picoult book I read. I liked it a lot, but I enjoyed The Pact more. The ending kind of pissed me off, but I enjoyed it all the same. I think this book should have shown more of Jessee and played a little more into his emotions because I found that the most interesting part of the book. Wouldn't you agree?

Also, has anyone read Perfect Match? What did you think of it? And does it ever show that little boy who gets molested grown up or as a teenager and describe how it affected him?

The Pact was the first Jodi Picoult novel I ever read, and I loved it. I have read, and now own, all of her books, and travel every spring to the nearest book signing (which is usually 2-4 hours away) to hear her speak. I don't get the hate for this book, or her as an author, at all. I will say that I am waiting for more non-courtroom dramas, because they all seem to lump together for me after a while. Books like Picture Perfect and Second Glance, among others, that center on the characters instead of the courtroom are more interesting and more individual in my opinion, but still.. The Pact was what hooked me on Picoult, period.

Yes, her writing can be better at times -- what author's can't? I prefer to read her work than many other contemporary authors, because of the language and writing style employed.

Yes, she uses a lot of plot twists, some of which you never saw coming because they seem to come out of nowhere -- but most of which I, and others I know who enjoy her books, saw coming, because we understood the moral question she asks in each story and can view it from all sides of the equation.

Yes, the main character in The Pact is a dead person. But I really left like I could understand Emily's plight, and why she was so depressed. Does it make it "right" for her to want to die? No. Was she selfish in asking Chris to kill her? Heck yes. But anyone who has been a teenager knows that troubles can mount on each other to a point that they seem insurmountable as a whole, and the fact is that thousands of teens feel the same way Emily did even though an objective outsider can't understand why. I thought this book really conveyed Emily's feelings and also did a great job of showing the interplay between the adults as they dealt with the aftermath of the situation.

For the record, NONE of the movies made based on these books have been enough like the books to matter much. There are places that are exactly like the book, and the overall story arcs are the same, but the movie versions all have different focuses than the books and usually leave out pretty important aspects. I enjoyed the movie version of The Pact, but not as much as I liked the book.

I think those of you who are saying you will never read another Jodi Picoult novel should try to find a different one (like Picture Perfect, the second Picoult book I ever read) that is not a courtroom novel, and see if you still think so badly of her.

That said, I probably don't like your favorite authors, and it's a free world so dislike who you want. I just wanted to throw my opinion in there.

The Pact really was a fantastic book. Definitely one of my favorites. I also really liked My Sisters Keeps and Nineteen Minutes, although I have not read some of her more recent work. She is a truly fabulous author.