Salem Falls

I truly enjoyed this book and devoured it in a single day of intense reading. However, I just can't bring myself to give it more than two stars. Yes, I have a penchant for Jodi Picoult's books, but this particular one fails to reach her usual high standards. It felt as if she was overly striving to create another "Jodi Picoult book," yet neglecting the crucial aspects such as the seamless unfolding of the story, the depth of the characters, and their underlying motivations.

I believe part of the reason this book irked me was that I had recently completed reading Alice Sebold's Lucky, which offered a brutally honest and heartrending account of a rape and its far-reaching consequences. In contrast, in this book, the rape is merely treated as a sensationalistic plot device. I've always been drawn to Picoult's works because they tackle difficult and intricate issues. But in this case, the story just seemed preposterous.

I do concede that the issue of branding sexual offenders for life is indeed a complex one, with both sides presenting compelling arguments. Nevertheless, this important issue seemed to be overshadowed by the highly improbable scenario of one seemingly angelic man being wrongly accused not just once, but twice, of raping teenage girls. And what on earth was the deal with all that Wiccan stuff? Additionally, the so-called grand plot twist at the end was blatantly obvious to me from approximately a third of the way through the book. Oh dear.

Another remarkable book by Picoult.

This time, the story centers around an innocent teacher who was wrongly accused of sexual misconduct with a female student and had served time in prison for it. After his release, he relocates to a new town. However, unfortunately, it doesn't take long for everyone to learn about his past, and the accusations start all over again. Once again, he is innocent.

One night, while drunk, he stumbles upon a group of girls who are in the woods celebrating a Wiccan holiday. Their false accusations land him back in jail. Thankfully, due to the unwavering devotion and faith of his new girlfriend, the truth gradually begins to unfold. Everything comes out in the open, including the details of the very first girl whose initial accusation set this whole chain of events in motion.

This is a truly powerful book that makes you think deeply and realize the immense power of lies and how they can utterly DESTROY the lives of innocent people. It is most definitely a book that I will cherish and keep in my personal library.

This is one of Jodi Picoult's best novels and it is also one of my absolute favourites.

In this chilling tale, perception truly becomes reality as we witness how one man can be condemned not just once, but twice. It is an incredibly compelling and thought-provoking read that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

The author handles the controversial subject matter of the novel with absolute perfection, presenting a plethora of unexpected twists and turns along the way.

The characters are not only appealing but also highly believable and extremely well-developed. I found myself completely falling in love with the characters of Addie and Jack.

Salem Falls is an unbelievably well-written novel that will grip you from the very beginning and not let go until the end.

It is truly a masterpiece that deserves every single one of the five stars it has received.

A must-read for any lover of great literature!

I'm not the kind of person who would typically pick up a Jodi Picoult book. I have to confess that I've always been a bit of a book snob when it comes to the choices my Mom made.

She loved mysteries, but not the classic ones like Christie or Doyle. She didn't go for the new or challenging authors like Steinhauer or Rankin either. And she hardly ever read anything truly pulpy like Leonard or Chandler. Instead, she favored the uber-popular stuff and was a huge fan of James Patterson and his peers, always rushing out to buy their latest hardcover releases on the day they came out.

This is where my snobbery kicked in. I tried a couple of Patterson's books early on and thought they were crap. So when my Mom discovered Jodi Picoult and added her to her list of favorite authors, telling me I should give her a try, I made fun of my Mom's taste and laughed internally as I avoided Picoult.

But then my Mom passed away last month, and my Dad asked me to go through her bookshelves and take anything I wanted. And there was Jodi Picoult.

Now, this alone probably wouldn't have been enough to make me grab a stack of my Mom's Picoult books. But two other things pushed me over the edge. First, I remembered that I had bought my Mom Jodi Picoult's Wonder Woman: Love Murder for Christmas. I had found it during a random browse in a bookstore and thought it would be a good way to introduce her to graphic novels. Second, I read a recent article by Stephen King where he was talking about the merits of some of our most popular novelists. He praised both Rowling and Picoult while damning Meyer and Patterson. I'm not a big fan of King's fiction, but I do enjoy his essays on popular culture and literature, so I took his opinions as good advice.

So I grudgingly added the Jodi Picoult books to my haul and randomly selected Salem Falls to put on my to-read soon stack.

I finished Salem Falls last night, and I have to say that I was completely surprised by how good it was, and yet also disappointed by how it fell short.

Picoult is a talented writer. She has real skill. She balances multiple characters with the speed and grace of a great screenwriter, giving us vivid scenes that quickly tell the story and move on to the next important moment without any unnecessary lingering. Her dialogue, though sometimes a bit cliché, is believable and helps to make each character unique. And her use of flashbacks to reveal bits and pieces about her characters is excellent.

I was hooked on Salem Falls by page ten, and she held my attention all the way to the end. I really didn't expect that.

Even with Stephen King's praise, I was still ready to scoff at Picoult's work. But she really impressed me. That is, until Salem Falls shifted from an interesting story about interesting people to a dull Law and Order style courtroom drama.

And it didn't have to be that way.

By the third act, Picoult abandoned the creativity that was making Salem Falls such a compelling read and took the easy way out, which is a shame because the unconventional approach would have been so much better and more realistic. You see, Picoult gave us all the information we needed to know the ending early on in the novel. A perceptive reader, paying close attention, would know exactly what was going on. The problem is that her characters, who are supposed to be smart (and in some cases brilliant), have the same information and yet never figure it out.

So we're left waiting to see how the "truth" is going to come out and save Jack St. Bride, how it's going to make the trial pointless, how it's going to save people's souls and the lives of some young women. But we're let down because, apparently, the smart people in Salem Falls aren't as smart as the people reading about them.

Usually, I'm a fan of stories where people don't get saved because that's often the case in real life. People suffer, they endure pain, they live with abuse that never ends. And when authors are brave enough to show that, I usually applaud. I would have in this case too, if Picoult had used dramatic irony. But she didn't. There was no crucial information that we had and the characters didn't. They had the same access to the facts as we did, and they were clueless. And that left me disappointed.

I wanted more from Picoult, and she promised more in the first two acts only to let us down in the third. Still, she did enough to win me over as a fan (albeit a somewhat skeptical one).

I will definitely read her again. I just hope she doesn't keep exceeding my expectations only to crush my hopes. I can only take so much of that.

Prior warning: I'm writing this review at 4 am having just finished this, and I'm both a tad confused as to how the author of Sing You Home could have written this and pretty peed off.

Anyone else a little tired of books about rape ending up with the poor, handsome white boy being innocent? Especially when it was clear Picoult was a little bit in love with him, describing his features and his wonderful personality and his pointless subplot about enjoying Jeopardy. To be accused twice of sexual assault and be innocent of both is a little beyond the realms of believability as well. Especially when a flashback to Jack's past revealed him to be quite the predator/condoner of sexual assault in his college years. What was the point of that flashback if not to cast doubt as to his moral character? Or were we supposed to consider him an awesome hero for eventually making them stop?

This is similar to my issue with the characterisation of Charlie who nonchalantly admitted rape to his victim and then apologised as though that is actually something acceptable we should be commending him for apologising for? Like I actually felt sick reading that knowing he wasn't ever going to be punished and she wasn't holding grudges against him.

The ending seems to have been incredibly obvious to most and admittedly I didn't see it coming despite usually being a plot guessing detective but... I just felt a little bit sickened that that's how she chose to end the novel with no explanation. Like Gillian has been getting abused for years by her father? Why spend the entire book trashing her character and her morals to then tell us that? I don't care about Jack and Addie's boring ass heteronormative happy life when I know there's a rapist working in the police force and a young girl is in an inappropriate relationship with her father.

I'm just not sure what Jodi's intentions were with this book; I had her down as perhaps being a bit of a feminist but I'm both disappointed and nauseous. A boring and generic romantic plot from nowhere doesn't take away the poor handling of a serious social issue.

I have two words to describe this novel, which are contrived and convoluted.

From the very beginning, this novel is ludicrous. The characters are so unbelievable that you simply don't care about their individual stories or the "big" picture they are all involved in. Seriously? A teacher wrongly convicted of a sex crime ends up in a town called Salem Falls, where teenaged witches are plotting against him just because they can? So, of course, he is again faced with false charges of rape being pressed against him, blah, blah, blah.

You know, yes, teenagers seem to make up the biggest growing section of pagan religions, including wicca and other witchcraft sects. But unless you actually know anything about the craft, it's best to leave that subject to people who do. Otherwise, you just look prejudiced against something you don't understand.

Anyway, I have read two other novels by Jodi Picoult, and I loved those. So, I guess this novel proves that even a gifted writer is capable of producing an occasional stinker! I say skip this one.

I said after my last Jodi Picoult read - Small Great Things - that I was growing rather tired of the ‘Picoult Formula’. I would have taken an extremely long break from her books if Salem Falls hadn't been waiting on my shelf to be read.

I was correct in thinking that it wasn't just because I had read several of her books in the past year that I didn't like Small Great Things. After reading this much earlier book for comparison, it's clear that she has become complacent in her writing and overdoes it. It's a city of vague symbolism!

However, this is supposed to be a review of Salem Falls. While symbolism and metaphors are still abundant throughout, they are much better executed and more evenly spaced in this book, which was definitely a welcome change. But, it follows her same ‘winning formula’, which unfortunately makes it very predictable. And it has her signature twist at the end, which this time I could see coming from a mile away, making it rather tedious at times. There were also some things that I \n  really\n didn't like about it. For example, the flashback to Jack and his college soccer team and their ‘bonding activity’. People who have already read it will know what I'm referring to. What on earth was that?! It made me so angry! I kind of wanted him to be found guilty because of that nonsense. Ugh!

But overall, it was still much more enjoyable than Small Great Things.

This is my sixth Jodi Picoult book within the last 1.5 years or so (and now Salem Falls), and there are still a few books by her that I would like to read one day (Lone Wolf, Plain Truth, and The Tenth Circle, specifically). But I know that if I'm going to have any chance of enjoying them, I will have to wait a year or two. I'm officially done with Picoult for a while.

This is one of my favourite Picoult books.

Although I am not a die-hard Picoult fan, this particular book has truly captivated my attention and made for a great read.

The story is filled with complex characters and a plot that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

Picoult has a unique way of exploring deep and emotional themes, and this book is no exception.

From the very beginning, I was drawn into the lives of the characters and their struggles.

The twists and turns in the plot kept me guessing until the very end.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a thought-provoking and engaging read.

It is a testament to Picoult's writing skills that she can create such a memorable and impactful story.

Even if you're not a fan of her work, this book is definitely worth checking out.

You might just be surprised at how much you enjoy it.