What Really Happened?

By: Kendra M.

               Yet another slam dunk for Jodi Picoult. The Pact was yet another wonderful book by Jodi Picoult. One that I thoroughly enjoyed reading and would absolutely read it again.

The Pact was a romantic tragedy. It followed the story about a young high school couple who attempted to commit suicide together. But it ended up becoming a botched double suicide when only one of the two died. The story unfolds and you get to know what actually happened on that night, through flashbacks. Which is typically how Jodi writes. She allows you to get to know their past while she tells you about what is happening after the fact. How Chris, who is the boyfriend, is getting blamed for Emily's, the girlfriend's, death. The story switches from present to past at the most intense part of the book which makes it so you can't put the book down. After reading a few of Jodi's books I have become a big fan of hers and I love the way she writes. She writes with such elegance that it's hard not to fall in love with the characters and build a relationship with them. Toward the end of the book there was a big plot twist that I did not see coming. It kept me on the edge of my seat with my eyes glued to the book. I respect that in a book and have come to notice that Jodi loves to do that to her readers. By the end of the book I was speechless.

               I would recommend this book to people who like romance. It wouldn't really be suitable for people who don't like romance because the book is focused around the romantic relationship that Chris and Emily had. I love romantic books so obviously I absolutely loved this book. However I had begun reading The Tenth Circle by Jodi and didn't get into the book all that much. I am currently starting The Storyteller which is an award winning book by Jodi Picoult. I will definitely let you know if that one's any better.

The Pact, by Jodi Picoult, William Morrow & Co., May 1998, 512 pages