Customer Reviews
Second Glance - By: Mr. David Feltham, 08 Jan 2009 
Go Back to what you do best Jodi
The intital chapter was enthralling. I thought, we have another great book here but thenin the following chapters, it just waffled on & on. This book could of been half the size. Not one of her best & i've read many of her books. If it's not broken don't fix it stick to what your good at.
A Good Read - By: K. S. Williamson, 28 Dec 2008 
I'm not an avid Jodi Picoult reader, but adored 'my sisters keeper' so thought I would give this one a try.
At first I was a little baffled, as there seemed to be an awful lot of unrelated characters each telling us their little story. I had to put the book down once, & had to keep re-reading little bits to remind myself of names, & who was talking now, but don't let this put you off, carry on reading & everything falls so wonderfully into place by the end! I was very impressed at how she managed to spin the story together, & how everybody & every event did match up!
I didn't enjoy it quite as much as my sisters keeper - mainly as I really don't believein ghosts & paranormal 'stuff' but if you get over that it is a really good read.
A Strange Read - By: Mr. Peter Steward, 23 Nov 2008 Sometimes when I have read a novel & turn to reviewing it I find comments difficult to come by. Sometimes my head is so full of thoughts that it is difficult to know where to start. This book comes into the latter category.
It is a very strange, almost surreal work of fiction based on fact. Ultimately a ghost story surrounding a master race style selection process undertakenin Vermontin the 1930s, it is a complex & at times difficult to understand novel.
To start with the book is divided into three sections - the first & third take placein 2001 but the middle section, which goes a long way to explaining what is happeningin the other two, is setin 1931. This does lead to some confusion. At times it's difficult to realise just how much information the author has allowed you to have earlier.
My main gripe with the novel is the ridiculous language it at times lapses into. Whilst the middle section of the book is powerful & well written, the first & third can be rather corny & I felt ultimately the book rather fizzled out. There were no massive surprises & the last pages turn more into an adventure tale than a ghostly mystery.
Getting back to the language. Picoult has a nasty habit of using "big words"in her text. At one point one of the characters actually picks up on this as part of a joke. But who really understands the words nictitating, ratiocinatively, catena, self-immolation of tropolgically - & these are just a few of those used.
Then there are sentences such as "Here I am confabulating about myself."
Even worse are passages that are just cringeworthy. Take these as examples:
"She smoothed down her napkin & looked down at her chipolata sausage, nestledin a bed of polenta." or
"She decided to put a tourniquet on the past for once & for all until it just dessicated & disappeared" or
"He tasted doubt on her tongue & pain on the roof of her mouth. He swallowed these & drank again. Consumed she had no choice but to see how empty he was inside & how sip by sip she filled him"
That doesn't mean that the novel isn't without merit. It is a good read, it touches on a number of important subjects & lets us into a world that isn't that far from the Salem Witch trialsin content or style. I would recommend this book, but you have to stay with it asin the first section numerous characters are introduced at almost break-neck speed & it is quite difficult to keep a tab on just who is who.
Different To All Her Usual Court Room Drama - By: Miss Jessica, 13 Nov 2008 I found this book very difficult to get into. I felt like giving up several times whilst reading the first hundred odd pages even though I was desperate to like it because I'm a huge Jodi Picoult fan & this is said to be her favourite novel that she's wrote to date. So reluctant to give up & believe that Jodi could write a bad novel I decided to go onto the Jodi Picoult fan site to see if anyone else had the same problem, & it turned out that most people did but urged everyone to read on as all becomes clear after part one & it gets better. So I carried on reading & I'm so glad that I did. Yes it's hard to get into but by the end of part one I was intrigued & by the end of part two I couldn't put it down! So if anybody reading this is having the same problems I do recommend you read on as it does get better & the random characters all introducedin part one start to come together & you see how they all fit into the story. However this book is very different to her other novels so if you've never read anything by Jodi before I'd recommend starting of with one of her classics such as The Pact or My Sisters Keeper to get a real feel as to what Jodi's all about & what she's capable of. Allin all I enjoyed it & would recommend it to any Picoult fan looking for something a little different to all her usual court room drama.
Touching, enjoyable - 4/5 - By: M. Block, 20 Oct 2008 I love Jodi's books, & this was good, not her best but very enjoyable. A slow start, but had a lot of twists & turns, which is typical for Picoult's books! The charactors were likeable, & believable. Recommended
