I've stayed away from her books for a little while because sometimes I just need a light and fun read, and Picoult's books are anything but light. This one is no exception. The main point of the book is about mercy (hence the title). As the back cover puts it, "When does love cross the line of moral obligation. And what does it mean to truly love another?" I had high hopes for this book as I began reading it and those high hopes were upheld as the book began to picked up its pace as a man confesses to murdering his wife because she asked him to (to relieve her of suffering from cancer). The problem is that the book never really picked up its pace from there. There were no major twists or turns in this one that kept me intrigued. It actually took me a couple of days to read, which is a long time for me.
Out of all of Picoult's books (other than maybe Plain Truth), this was probably my least favorite. The story had a lot of potential, but it just missed its mark for me. The story was focused more on the relationship between the police chief and his wife rather than the relationship between the victim and her husband, which is what I think it should've been about. Either way, the writing was still good and the story intriguing. I would recommend it but only if you've already read her others. Don't pick this one up for your first Picoult.
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I completely agree with you. I was left pretty unsatisfied at the end. Picoult spends so much of the book building up Cam's affair and the potential destruction of it when/if Allie finds out, only to have her be pretty calm and collected when it does happen. And to be honest, his reasons for staying with her isn't about his love for her, it was about his fear of losing his position, recognition, admiration, security, etc. that she offers. Is that love, after all? Her reasons for not wanting the divorce could happen (she loves him unconditionally) but forgiveness in this book comes waaaay too easily.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing, ending with Jamie's acquittal and NOTHING afterwards was like dropping the ball for me. Come on! At least a few of the "pros" and "cons" could've been hinted at. After all, there will be readers from both sides of the euthanasia fence. I didn't feel like this left my imagine with potential scenarios, more like "okay, he got off and saw his wife's ghost. he should be a happy man now." done.
Very unsatisfying....
Whoops! I didn't notice you had reviewed this one already until I went and posted mine! At least there is 11 months in between, right? :)
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