A SHOT IN THE DARK. (The Pact - Jodi Picoult)

Member Name: thingywhatsit

Product:	The Pact - Jodi Picoult
Date:	22/01/07 (1146 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Super story telling at its best.

Disadvantages: Not everyone's cup of tea, though keeping an open mind might be wise.

Jodi Picoult has a lot to answer for. Her books are eating into my life, and the reason for this is that she really does have the knack of telling a good story. Having read a couple of her books, which dealt with questions of morality, and relationships between parents and children, I wanted to read something that dealt again with morality, though this time with the relationship between parent and adolescent, and this book seemed to be offering exactly what I was looking for.

The story that is presented here tells of two couples, living in a relatively exclusive area in New Hampshire, and being neighbours since the birth of their youngsters, right through to the present day, when their children are respectively sixteen and seventeen. The relationship between the main characters of the book, Emily Gold and Chris Harte, is the central focus of the story, which culminates in Emily being found dead of a gunshot wound. This doesn't give anything of the story away, because the scenario is sketched out on the cover, though what the cover doesn't tell you is the intensity of the relationship, and the whys and wherefores that lead to this startlingly drastic event. From childhood friendship, the link between these two main characters strengthens into a grown up relationship, when they become lovers.

The portrayal of the characters that make up this story is astoundingly believeable and as a reader you really do get pulled into asking moral questions about yourself sometimes. You see little familiar traits, and Jodi Picoult is very clever in her writing, in that even at the end of a story, the reader is left with questions, not as to the outcome of the story but as to whether morally that outcome was the right one. For example, the reaction of parents was very well described, and their reactions to the story as it unfolded equally well documented and relevant when you relate to how the perception of situations is clouded by the closeness of the characters involvement within the story. Parents that question whether they should have noticed traits that might have given a clue as to problems in the lives of their children was particularly well dealt with. I could relate to both the couples portrayed in the book, their relationship with each other, and the closeness of their lives, and although a difficult subject to deal with, I could even relate to the manner in which their prejudices and betrayal of their friendship with each other could play a part in a story like this. It is almost as if each set of parents needed someone outside of themselves to blame for what happened, preferring this to the alternative of blaming themselves.

What did bother me, and it really does bother me in real life as well, was the plea bargaining that is used all the time in the United States. In this particular case, it was just part and parcel of the story, though demonstrates the unfairness of the law, in that the way in which the trial may go because of circumstance, can actually sway a defendant into pleading guilty of a lesser charge, simply because of the weight of evidence, even though they may not have committed the crime. The defence lawyer seemed to sum it up in saying that truth had very little to do with what happened in a courtroom, and that really is a sad state of affairs.

I haven't outlined the characters other than a brief outline of Chris and Emily, because the other relationships within the book and that make this story work, really sink into insignificance compared to that of the two main players, although the background, the feelings and judgements of the parents play a very important rôle in the book. I was amazed that even at three quarters of the way through the book, I hadn't a clue as to how it would turn out, though kept reading, and found the read to be almost addictive. I wanted to know. I cared enough for the characters to want to see the outcome, and that really does define the skill of the writer to keep the reader interested.

I also found several little clues that lead me to believe that not even the author was sure of the direction her story was taking, and emailed her to ask. She affirmed that the story could have gone one of several ways, and that the little "red herrings" thrown into the story were done so intentionally, to give her options of how the story finished. I thought this particularly clever, and as a story writer myself was fastinated in the writing process that a professional writer uses in order to achieve an exceedingly readable book. She astounds me.

At the end of the book, and at the end of many of this authors books, there are areas of discussion on moral questions, and I enjoy these exercises, and writing down my feelings on events that take part within the book. To me, the experience of reading Jodi Picoult doesn't end at the end of the story, and it is always a bonus for me that there are exercises that the reader can participate in, in order to get their thoughts into perspective at the end of reading such a dramatic book.

There is also an interview with the author, which was enlightening. It tells how the story was created, the paths that her thoughts took her on in the creation of what to me is an extremely readable, and well thought out book. Jodi Picoult certainly does her homework, and studies in the area of the book contents in order to present a factual based fiction story, and she does this convincingly enough to pursuade me that her books are worth the money I pay for them. I have three so far, and none have disappointed me. I have yet another three to read, but what I am seeing from her writing is good value, wonderfully convincing writing style, and an amazing ability to keep the reader interested, to the extent that you picture the characters. I can see in my minds eye the parents of both Chris and Emily. I can picture their faces, their expressions, their sentiment, and although my picture may not be the same as the writers was, the fact that the pictures are there means that she did something right and that her book made an impact on me. It did.

She explains in the interview how she set up a website and how much she enjoys the feedback that she gets from readers. I had questions about the book, and wrote to her, and was thrilled to receive an email back, as I thought that perhaps her correspondence would have been dealt with by a secretary. Her website shows the books written and gives readers a chance to get to know more about the author, which I enjoyed.

Compared to other modern writers that I have read, her books are a joy, each different, each dealing with everyday things in a sensitive and also a very realistic though interesting way, picking up on the parts of her characters thoughts that other writers fail to paint into their picture. The picture painted by Jodi Picoult is full technicolor with all the textures that make it stand out from the rest.

From 4.89 new on Amazon.co.uk

Paperback: 528 pages
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Paperbacks; New Ed edition (18 Jul 2005)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0340838035
ISBN-13: 978-0340838037


Rachel

Summary: A story told by a master of story weaving.