This book was a troubling story about two teenagers who make a pact to commit suicide. Without giving too much away, I have to say that I did not let my son use a public bathroom by himself for a very long time after reading this book. All in all, it was a good story that disturbed me on a number of levels. It gave the reader a lot to consider and discuss. ( )

I just got finished reading The Pact by Jodi Picoult and it was a very good book by far. It is probably my favorite love story. It was about these two kids who were unseperable since birth and grew up together. They were highschool sweethearts and then something tragical happened. But I dont want to say anymore cause I don't want to give it away. I would really recommend this book for you to read. ( )

(unabridged audiobook read by George Guidall): The Golds and the Hartes are neighbors and best friends. Their children, Chris Harte and Emily Gold, are raised practically as siblings, and start dating seriously as teenagers. As the story opens, Emily dies from a gunshot wound to the head and Chris claims it was a botched double suicide attempt. Soon after, Chris is on trial for the murder of his girlfriend. There's some interesting discussion of how well parents can really know their teenage children and some decent drama between the two families, but for the most part it's pretty unconvincing. The parents are remarkably unwilling to ask obvious questions, and I find it hard to believe that Chris and Emily would have been so tight-lipped for so long. This is one of Picoult's books I would recommend skipping, especially since several of her other works are so excellent. ( )

The book I'm reviewing is The Pact, by Jodi Picoult. I chose to read this book because I've read many of Picoult's books in the past, and I have thoroughly enjoyed each one. It is always amazing to me the way that the author is able to allow the reader to connect to her characters 100%. You feel like you ARE Chris and Emily. Jodi Piccoult allows a perfectly sane person to imagine what it would feel like to want to kill yourself, or to love someone so much that you would literally do ANYTHING for them.

The book is basically about two families who are irrevocably connected to one another and who happen to have children who are the same age; Chris and Emily. As Chris and Emily grow older they become romantically involved and so interwined that their lives could not possibly go on seperated. Until they are brought into an ER--Chris with a scalp wound, and Emily with a hole through her head.

As the story progresses, the reader is dragged from one conclusion to the next, constantly struggling to find the truth, and when there are no more pages to turn, it is impossible to walk away without being haunted by the plot. This is one of the best books I've ever read. ( )

Trying to write a review of this novel two months later is a bit of a stretch, but here goes. The novel involves two teenagers who, having grown up with each other, naturally fall in love and begin to plan a life together - or do they?
The gist of the novel is actually the aftermath of a suicide - the "pact" of the story's title. The main character is actually dead, so we never get her side of it. The boyfriend who is left behind, stands trial for his girlfriend's supposed suicide, which looks more like murder to friends, family and the D.A.
Melodramatic and extremely plot-driven, the whole suicide part of the storyline never really felt legit. Picoult has done better -- read her other novels instead!
(Read January 2006) ( )