I have been an avid reader of Jodi Picoult since the late 90s, and my relationship with her works is rather complex. It's not exactly a love/hate thing; perhaps it's more like the situation in "Brokeback Mountain."

If I could, I think I would quit reading her books, but I just can't seem to break free. I read her novels, get angry at her and at myself for getting sucked in again, and then eagerly pre-order the next one when it's released. It's almost like a sickness.

The first book of hers that I read was "The Pact," followed by "Plain Truth." Since then, I've been devouring her new releases as they come out and also going back to read most of her earlier works. While I've made my way through a significant portion of her back catalog, there are still a few that I haven't started, like "Picture Perfect" and "Harvesting the Heart," and until now, I never finished "Mercy." In some ways, I wish that were still the case.

If you're not a glutton for punishment and can refrain from continuously torturing yourself, you may not be familiar with the Jodi Picoult formula. In each of her books, she tackles a different social issue, sometimes multiple ones. Most, if not all, also involve a legal battle related to the social issue. In previous works, she's delved into autism, school shootings, rape, child abuse, abortion, white supremacy, the Holocaust, suicide, in vitro fertilization, the right to frozen embryos, and gay marriage, just to name a few.

In "Mercy," the social issue is euthanasia, but not really. While that's the premise and the initial setup, this book is really about the dynamics of love and mistreatment in relationships. For Allie and Cam, Allie loves deeply while Cam couldn't care less. For Jamie and his wife (whose name I can't recall), Jamie is the one who loves more, but to be fair, his wife doesn't seem to treat him poorly.

Allie is foolishly devoted to her distant and unlikable husband, Cameron. Cam is Scottish and, after his father's death, becomes the head of his clan, which means giving up his dream of traveling the world and returning home to be the sheriff of his small town. He's bitter and secretly reads travel magazines like porn,不愿 share this shameful interest with his wife. He's cold and distant, barely able to bring himself to have sex with Allie. Despite all this, Allie is content with her life, that is, until Jamie MacDonald arrives in town. Jamie has come to Wheelock to kill his terminally ill wife and then turn himself in to his distant cousin and clansman, Cam.

As Allie becomes involved in the legal case against Jamie, she begins to wonder if her husband would love her enough to kill her if she asked. Yes, that's really what she thinks. I'm not exaggerating. While Allie is busy with the trial, the recent newcomer, Mia, is taking care of Allie's flower shop and also warming Cam's bed. It turns out that Cam can't resist the mysterious stranger he may or may not have seen once while traveling in Europe. He has no qualms about cheating on his wife, despite his moral superiority in many other aspects. Like I said, he's a complete jerk, and so is Mia. They are both thoroughly unlikable and wretched people.

So, as I mentioned earlier, the euthanasia storyline really takes a backseat to the steamy affair and the Scottish Clan drama. It's really not a good book.

3.5 stars

This particular Jodi Picoult book didn't manage to challenge my opinions to the extent that I had both expected and desired. It seemed that there was a significant amount of other, less crucial elements that were given more priority. However, it's important to note that the book was still good. There were certain aspects that held my interest and kept me engaged throughout the reading process. Maybe it didn't have that wow factor that some of her other works possess, but it still had its merits. The story had its moments of depth and emotion, and the characters were well-developed. Overall, while it didn't completely meet my high expectations, it was still a worthwhile read.

Normally, Jodi Picoult's novels have an irresistible allure for me, captivating my attention like a house on fire. I become deeply invested in her characters, their moral dilemmas, and the consequences that follow their actions. However, in this particular story, I found myself unable to tolerate Cam. He was an embodiment of negative traits - selfish, self-centered, controlling, bitter, and devoid of kindness, save for a single instance when he funded Jamie's lawyer.

Cam was also needlessly cruel to his wife, Allie. She, in turn, enabled his behavior until she uncovered his affair. Only then did she stand up to him as she contemplated whether her marriage was salvageable. I also had a strong aversion to Mia. I couldn't quite fathom her character. I initially suspected that she and Cam had a prior acquaintance before their hasty union, but that wasn't the case. Instead, she exploited Allie's goodness and generosity to engage in an affair with Cam.

On the other hand, I could feel the pain and struggles of Jamie and Maggie as Maggie's incurable illness took a toll on their lives. I admired Jamie for fulfilling his wife's last wish of assisted suicide or mercy killing. Picoult didn't disappoint me entirely - she did manage to grab my attention with her storytelling. However, the creation of two characters with minimal redeeming value (Cam/Mia) somewhat dampened my enjoyment of the story. This is the first Picoult book that I have rated less than five stars. Although I haven't read all of her works, I'm curious to see how I'll respond to the next one I select. I have high hopes that Picoult will return to her former glory in another novel.

I have spent the past several hours attempting to unwind and decompress from this whole situation. And yet, my intense hatred for Cam, that self-centered, repulsive, and narcissistic individual, has not cooled in the slightest.

Perhaps this is because of his immediate decision to cheat on his long-suffering and loyal wife in the most disrespectful and demeaning of ways, all while chewing up (tricked you, didn't I?) the many years of their marriage with a supreme betrayal.

I just listened to the 80s song "Goodbye to You" by Scandal (lol, how fitting). In honor of Allie, I wish to hell it could have been her theme song!

It's truly amazing how one person's actions can cause such a whirlwind of emotions and turmoil. Cam's behavior is not only despicable but also a clear indication of his lack of character and integrity.

As I sit here, still seething with anger, I can't help but wonder what the future holds for all of us involved. Will Allie be able to move on and find true happiness? And will Cam ever face the consequences of his actions?

Only time will tell, but for now, I'm left with this burning hatred and a sense of injustice.

Can one kill a person out of love?
He could, because she asked him to.
Meg, who was suffering from a disease and getting weaker and weaker, no longer wanted to endure the pain. She said
"Living like this is not okay." Deeply in love and unable to say no, James fulfilled the woman's wish.

"Have you ever looked at yourself from above and realized that you already have everything? Have you ever felt that in your life everything is as you expected, and there is nowhere to go except down?"

The H is engaged in an ongoing affair with an OW. He has even gone so far as to make plans to leave his wife, the h, for the OW. It's not as if the H ever has a moment of clarity and realizes that he truly loves his wife. Oh no! Instead, the OW decides to leave him, and yet he still spends his days pining after her.

When the h asks him if he has slept with the OW in their house, in their very own bed, he lies to her. The truth is that they have indeed done so, but he chooses not to tell her.

The story comes to an end with him still longing for the OW who has left him and having no choice but to settle for the h.

It should be noted that there are other reviews that are far more eloquent than mine. For example, take a look at this one.

Meh. I found myself enjoying this book mainly due to the writing style, which was quite engaging. However, I had an intense dislike for most of the characters.

Cam, for instance, claims to love his wife Allie, but only as long as she gazes at him as if he were her savior. In my opinion, he doesn't truly love her. Instead, he loves the fact that she loves him to such an extent that she'll submit to his will. He couldn't care less about her happiness; all that matters to him is what she can offer him. It's absolutely infuriating. As for Allie, I felt a strong urge to shake her and make her realize that she deserves better. She really needed to have the courage to walk away.

Thankfully, Jamie MacDonald was the redeeming quality of this book. I absolutely adored him. He loved his wife deeply and was determined to make everything better for her. His love for her was centered around her happiness.

Overall, I'm not angry that I read this book, but at the same time, I'm relieved that it's over. It had its moments, but the unlikable characters definitely left a sour taste in my mouth.

This is just one of Jodi Picoult's standard works. The problem is that a man kills his dying loved one at her request. A trial takes place.

Another problem is that a policeman who has been fired from the force, let's say the main character, starts the novel with a woman he accidentally meets in the city.

I can very strongly identify with the policeman, Cam. He is so eager to travel that instead of a stable marriage and the love of his woman (forgive me, but that woman seemed like a pain in the neck until the atomic bomb), he chose a path where he could at least partly get what he otherwise wouldn't dare to do. Maybe even she herself would have doubted her marriage and suffered as much as he did, unable to fulfill her desires. Because people don't change. And living a whole life thinking "what if" is unacceptable to me. It's a dilemma, but we live only once.

The theme of euthanasia was not painful for me. I have had my opinion on this for a very long time. And I really don't see the guilt in the fact that the man helped his woman to leave this world easily. Only strength. How strongly must one love to be willing to kill?

I really liked it. I didn't believe it. Or maybe I was just lenient with this author because the relationship between her works and me has been established for quite some time.

I recommend it.

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I really enjoyed it.

It was an experience that brought me great joy and satisfaction.

From the moment I started, I was completely immersed in it.

The details, the atmosphere, everything was just perfect.

I found myself lost in it, forgetting about all the other things in the world.

It was like a magical escape that allowed me to relax and have fun.

I could feel my stress melting away with each passing moment.

The excitement and anticipation kept building up, making it even more enjoyable.

I will always remember this wonderful experience and look forward to having more like it in the future.

It truly made my day and left a lasting impression on me.

It has been a rather difficult read indeed.

I have restarted this very same book no less than three times.

Currently, I am on my fourth attempt, and my aspiration is to get as close as possible to reading it straight through without any major interruptions.

The thing is, it's not that the book isn't interesting per se.

The issue lies in the fact that there is an abundance of background knowledge scattered throughout the first 200 pages.

This requires me to constantly stop and process the information, which can be a bit of a challenge and slows down my reading pace.

However, I am determined to persevere and overcome these obstacles to fully appreciate the story that lies ahead.

I would rate this a 3.5. The main reason is that it was extremely long.

Moreover, there were numerous parts in this book that seemed rather irrelevant to me. In fact, they probably could have been omitted without affecting the overall story.

However, the concept itself was interesting. It had the potential to be a really engaging read if it had been more concise and focused.

Despite the length and the few extraneous parts, there were still some aspects of the book that held my attention.

Overall, it was an okay read, but it could have been much better with a bit of trimming and refinement.

I hope the author takes these points into consideration for future works.

I really liked it but it was far from my favorites. Honestly, in the middle of the book, I didn't even want to know what was going to happen to Jamie. I was more interested in the story of Allie and Cam.

The characters of Allie and Cam seemed to have more depth and complexity. Their relationship and the events surrounding them held my attention much more strongly than Jamie's storyline.

Maybe it was because their story had more twists and turns, or perhaps it was the way the author developed their personalities. Either way, it made me less invested in what was happening to Jamie.

However, I still think the book had its merits. The writing was engaging, and the overall plot was interesting enough to keep me reading. It just goes to show that everyone has their own preferences when it comes to literature.