Verdict: Guilty or Not Guilty

DEFENDING JACOB                 By: William Landay                 5 Stars (Favorites)

Mind blowing.

The last time I remember feeling this way was about 7 years ago. I had just watched The Prestige with Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale. By the end of the movie you are given most of the puzzle pieces, but I still had this strong desire to immediately re-watch the movie so I could make those puzzle pieces fit together. Even to this day, whenever I watch that movie I am still trying to figure out those little details. Defending Jacob left me with a similar feeling of wanting to re-read the book and see how everything I learned in the final chapter fit into the rest of the story.

William Landay weaves mystery, science, and relationships all into one incredible legal thriller. From reading a few reviews on this book, I knew there would be a surprise. I have become picky with mystery books. They have to follow the basic rules of a mystery, yet still leave me in awe over the outcome. Mysteries used to be my favorite genre, but lately I have a hard time finding ones where I love the outcome and the details leading up to it.

Since I was looking for an unpredictable ending, I tried to come up with a few different theories. I figured at least one of them would nail the ending. Not that I believe I am amazingly gifted at predicting the ending of books, but that I have read enough of them that few leave me surprised. It doesn’t matter how many theories I had, the ending of the book still resulted in an unpredictable way. In fact, I tried to finish the end right before going to bed, which is not recommended. I had the most difficult time going to sleep as I couldn’t turn my brain off and stop thinking about the ending.

The book provided excellent foreshadowing. It was more to let you know something incredible was going to happen, without giving away the secrets. Landay provides a unique way of presenting the storyline. Andy, an Assistant District Attorney (and Jacob’s father) is on the witness stand being questioned by his replacement, Neil Lojiudice. You start reading a copy of the trial transcript and switch over to Andy’s narrative of the story while he describes the story behind the questioning. Andy tells his story as if he were reminiscing after the trial completion. Without giving away the ending he eludes to things that will happen without actually making it easy to guess what is coming.

To expand on the plot line, as Andy works in the District Attorney’s office he receives most of the cases that come in. He then decides to work them or pass them on to another. Andy knew that the murder of a 14 year-old boy would be a high profile case, so he decides to keep it. Ben was a follow student at Jacob’s school. Soon we find out that Ben had been bullying Jacob, and Jacob purchased a knife for protection. Before long Jacob is arrested and Lojiudice takes over the case when Andy is no longer an impartial lawyer. The story continues with Andy and his wife defending Jacob. Is Jacob actually guilty? If he were, would it matter? Would they fulfill the justice the law demands or protect their son at all costs?

Jacob’s trial brings up the age old question of Nature vs Nurture. When Andy’s unsavory heritage comes into question we are left wondering what to believe in reference to behavioral genetics. Is there such a thing as a murdering gene or is that a just a legal tactic to implicate the defendant?

I can’t give this book enough good praise. It captures you right at the beginning and takes you on a journey that makes you wonder what you believe in the story and even questioning what you believe about yourself and your own behavioral genetics. The story is strong enough you never know who to fully trust and who to be wary of. It is highly unlikely you will be disappointed.

 

REAL JUSTICE Series                                                   3 Stars

FOURTEEN AND SENTENCED TO DEATH: The Story of Steven Truscott        By: Bill Swan

GUILTY OF BEING WEIRD: The Story of Guy Paul Morin                    By: Cynthia J. Faryon

These books are real life stories of the wrongly convicted in Canada. Morin was one of the first to be acquitted based on new DNA evidence, leading to many others acquittals including Truscott.

They are quick reads, yet the fact that they are so short leads to a lower rating for me. There were too many things that were brought up yet never talked, including how they were handled in court, or if they were handled at all.

The only two stories I read (out of 6, you may view them here

) were the result of poorly obtained evidence and a tainted political system. I feel like I need to read other stories of the legal system actually doing the job they were created to do. They were interesting and disturbing all at the same time.

                  

Great, until the End

BLACKBERRY WINTER                     By: Sarah Jio                       3 Stars

To be fair, I was really into this book, until the end. Let me set it up for you a little bit. The author is a journalist and the protagonist is a reporter. Unless I am giving way too much credit to those professions, aren’t they supposed to pay attention to facts?  Beyond that, doesn’t an editor specialize in paying attention to details too? Why then did the facts in this mystery not end up fitting together?

Claire is a present day reporter who recently lost her unborn child. Vera is a maid at a prestigious hotel in 1933. Blackberry winter refers to a late winter storm in May, which happens in both storylines. Besides the storm on the same day, Vera also lost her child after she came home from work to find her three-year-old, Daniel, missing from their apartment.

Claire feels a connection to Vera and wants to find out what happened to her child in an effort to help herself heal from her own loss. Their lives intertwine with many similarities that help the story unfold. Even with Claire and her husband’s lack of communication (which always bothers me in books and movies, at least their reason makes sense while they both grieve in their own way) I found both characters to be endearing and wanted things to work out with a happy ending for both.

So, the book was great, then I get to the end where things start falling into place, only to be frustrated that the details don’t connect and even more annoyed that the people who should notice the facts don’t fall into place seem to miss the obvious. It might just be me, this book is a Reader’s Choice nominee at my library and others I have talked to have loved it. Perhaps they didn’t notice that the details didn’t fit, or perhaps it didn’t bother them.

In reality, the main detail that annoyed me did slightly change for the better, but the answer still didn’t fit with the story characters and more research could have been done to make everything work. Instead the book just ended, and a little too sugary-perfect I might add. Either way, pick up the book and decide for yourself what to think.     

Forms of Brave

ON FOLLY BEACH        By: Karen White          4 Stars

Karen White is a personal favorite of mine. She authors the entertaining Tradd Street series, as well as other books, which I have yet to read. From the books I have been able to read by White, she seems to focus a lot on the relationships between groups of people. Many of these relationships deal with multiple generations, as is the case in On Folly Beach.

There are two storylines, one starting in 1942 and another starting in 2009. Both of these stories have similar plots and characters, yet you are never bored by the similarities. We originally start with Emmy in 2009, whose husband just died in Afghanistan. She is devastated and is finally convinced by her mom, as well as a mysterious note in a book margin, to head to Folly Beach, South Carolina to start over. She purchases Folly Finds, a book store her mother frequented as a child, and who was the original owner the book with the message.

In 1942 we are introduced to Maggie, the original owner of Folly Finds. Maggie has a much younger sister, Lulu, and a cousin, Catherine. Cat is also a recent widow due to Pearl Harbor. Cat is a little bit of a wild child and as both her parents are gone, Maggie promised her own dead parents that she would take care of Cat and Lulu. The problem is both Maggie and Lulu loved Cat’s husband and it is because of Cat’s sabotage that Maggie didn’t end up as Jim’s widow instead.

As the plots thicken you will find more sabotage, betrayal, love, secrets, and of course, bravery. Emmy is told multiple times that she is brave. Her bravery comes in the form of staying home while her brave husband fights for our nation.  Other brave acts are presented in this historical novel that might throw a few surprises your way. Whether you are surprised or not, you will still enjoy the storylines and how they all come together at the end.

 

OVERCOME: Burned, Blind, Blessed          By: Carmen Blandin Tarleton         4 Stars

Overcome was recommended to me by a random patron one day while working.  I checked it out soon after, but didn’t have a chance to read it for quite a while. In fact, while reading MSN (or some other news site) one day, I ran across a slideshow of face transplants. Imagine my surprise when I saw a story that sounded familiar. I had to check the author name to make sure it really was the same person. I did see Carmen’s new face and she looks beautiful.

To be honest, I had to skim some of the book because of time issues. However, the portions I did get to were worth the read. Carmen deals with a lot of heartbreak from her relationship with Herb. Eventually the relationship is terminated and Herb ends up dousing Carmen with industrial strength lye. She was burned around 80% of her body and left blind. I found it difficult to read her descriptions of gaining some vision, losing it and so much more.

Some of Herb’s issues are presented in the book, but I imagine most of it goes beyond what Carmen even knew or laid out for the reader. At one point in the book Herb said he was looking for a reason not to harm Carmen, but never received it. Carmen was attacked early in the morning, just a few hours after Herb’s birthday. Carmen did feel an impression to call him, but never did. However, nobody knows if a simple birthday wish would have prolonged the horrible situation, or prevented it altogether.

Who knew if that simple call would have even been the sign Herb was waiting for, or if he would have comprehend the call as a sign either. What could have been didn’t change reality. The reality: Herb’s 15 minute attack on Carmen changed countless lives forever.

Carmen experienced things that no one ever should have to, but as we all learn from our trials, Carmen learned a level of healing that would be hard to achieve without going through the process. Carmen commented on how she was called brave. She was brave. She sat in court with Herb so he could see what he had done. More importantly, she rose above her situation and learned to become a motivational speaker, even speaking about forgiveness.

When Carmen first testified in court, images of her were presented on the news. Before her story was given, a warning was provided that graphic images would be displayed. The realization that Carmen was the graphic image was detrimental to her healing process. With time Carmen was able to overcome her “Disfigurement Challenge” and accept herself for what she was. Once Carmen’s outlook of herself changed, miraculously others changed as well. Instead of scaring children in public, they were coming over to her for a hug. As pivotal as this was, it was not as important as her ability to forgive.

Carmen was not only able to forgive Herb for his well-being, but for herself as well. When Carmen was first attacked, she had a vision of sorts. She distinctly saw the words like a movie screen: “CHOICE. Life. Is. A. Choice.” Carmen chose to press on with life and forgiveness. She did not want to have anger and hurt. She didn’t want those 15 minutes to define her. She made the choice to forgive. With that forgiveness she has set out to tell her story so others can realize the same healing in their lives. She is counteracting Herb’s negativity by replacing it with positivity.

At one point Carmen spoke at the Vermont State Prison during their National Crime Victims’ Rights Week. This was a prison where Herb had been incarcerated at some point (yet he had been transferred previous to the event). During the Q & A portion of the event, a prisoner asked Carmen if she had forgiven her attacker. Carmen replied by stating that she was not the only victim. Herb too was a victim.

Carmen remarked that victims are merely just victims of victims. Another inmate said he never forgave his perpetrator and he treated his victim the same way he had been treated. He didn’t forgive, he just repeated the cycle. However, Carmen made it clear that even without the victim’s forgiveness (which you have no control over) you need to focus on your own forgiveness.

Carmen wanted others to realize that selfishness shouldn’t be this horrible word in society. In reality, if we are all taking care of ourselves, we are better able to take care of others. In order to stop the vicious cycle we need to learn to love and forgive ourselves, that way we can love others instead of hurting them. By taking care of ourselves we are able to become better parents, spouses, friends, siblings, and more.

The idea of forgiveness happened in a most profound way when Carmen mentioned her mother’s healing. Her mother was consumed with revenge for the first few weeks. Luckily, while talking to a neighbor at a grocery store they said everyone in town wanted Herb dead and wanted to cause him pain if they had the chance. Carmen’s mom realized how absurd this idea was. They wanted to react to violence by causing more violence. She had seen the pain Carmen and others were going through. It was senseless to think that the same acts of violence would solve the problem. She didn’t understand how anyone would want to be as inhumane as Herb had been at that moment. From that point on Carmen’s mom started her own healing and forgiveness, her own road back to sanity.

At the end of the book, Carmen was only beginning her journey to receive a face transplant. As mentioned above we now know that the transplant has been complete. Not only that, but Carmen is moving on and thriving in her new life. She is now in a new relationship, one with a man who loved her even before she had a face transplant. She has been burned and blinded, yet she has overcome and is now reaping the blessings associated with her bravery and forgiveness.

Here are some stories I found about Carmen:

http://www.overcomebook.com/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/carmen-blandin-tarleton_n_3194772.html

http://www.brighamandwomens.org/about_bwh/publicaffairs/news/facetransplant/default.aspx This is the hospital who have completed face transplants, in addition to Carmen.

As sad as this is to say after understanding how it hurt Carmen to hear…Graphic Images are found on this slideshow. It is before and after pictures of those who have been blessed enough to receive face transplants… http://www.reuters.com/news/pictures/slideshow?articleId=USRTR2DG2I#a=1

There are many more that can be found with a little research.

The Darkest Places

INFERNO             By: Dan Brown                   5 Stars

As I was talking to a friend about this book it was brought up that the problem with Dan Brown is the fact that all of his books are similar. This is true. However, based on the content discussed in each book, I still feel like I am learning something (which for me is considered a perk that I look forward to while reading).

Dan Brown weaves his books with references to historical landmarks, art, literature, religion and science. It takes me quite a bit longer to finish his books as I am usually looking up images and researching topics as I go along.

Side Note: When I looked up the image of the Piazza del Duomo I was left breathless, when you add to that Giotto’s bell tower and the Baptistery of San Giovanni, which has Ghiberti’s bronze Gates of Paradise and black and white tiled floors, it sealed the deal of Florence being one of my Italian tour destinations.

In a previous entry I mentioned how I have “when the stars align” moments. This is where everything just seems to fit perfectly together without me planning the end result. This book was one of those moments. Inferno is based off the Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy, which is composed of three canticas: Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paridiso. Imagine my surprise when the book I read and reviewed just previous to this one (Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly) used the same Dante literature. Revolution also made references to The Divine Comedy and even broke the book into three sections: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise.

The most profound quote in Interno is originally by Dante. It can be found referenced before the prologue as well as multiple times within the actual story. “The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis”. This basically covers the entire book’s premise. How will you handle some of the greatest crises in your life? Pick up Inferno and discover how the characters handle theirs.

All Things Willie

Imagine my surprise when I read one incredible book where one of the main characters is a lady named Willie, only to pick up my next great read and find out the main character is a man also by the name of Willie. I have a saying that I use when things just seem to fit together so perfectly, almost as if it was planned to fit so perfectly. That saying usually deals with the universe, most frequently: When the Stars Align. little bit of magic happened with these two books.

 

OUT OF THE EASY       By: Ruta Sepetys                     5 Stars

Josie’s mom is a prostitute in 1950s New Orleans. In fact, Josie is even named after a famous brothel madam who died on Valentine’s Day, the same day as Josie’s birthday. Fortunately, Josie has no desire to follow in her mom’s footsteps. She has excellent marks in school and it is her dream is to attend college anywhere by in New Orleans. To make this dream possible she works in a bookshop in addition to cleaning her mother’s brothel house, where Willie is the madam, in the French Quarter.

On New Year’s Eve a respectable man ends up dying in the French Quarter (shortly after having a drink with Josie’s mom), who has recently left town with Cincinnati, a John from the brothel house with mob ties. Even Willie doesn’t approve of Cincinnati and tries to convince Josie to cut ties with her mother. In a progression of events, Josie finds herself thrown into a situation where she must decide what family truly means and discover if family will trump her dreams of leaving the Big Easy forever.

Sepety’s first book was Between Shades of Gray (not to be confused with 50 Shades of Grey). That book put her on my top authors list. Maybe it has been long enough since I read it, but I think I liked this book even better as Out of the Easy was a world that made slightly more sense to me. Sepety’s writing is phenomenal, definitely securing her as one of my favorite authors.

 

SUTTON                       By: J. R. Moehringer               4 Stars

Ok, I have to be honest. I never did finish Sutton, but that is not because the book was not good. I was enjoying it, but I couldn’t get through it fast enough and then life happened and it was due back at the library before I could finish it. It wasn’t a book that I had to know about the ending, because I could do a little research and find out what Willie Sutton was all about. I even learned about the Sutton Law, which I am not totally sure the book was going to cover anyway. Since there are too many other books to move on to, I decided I had to let Sutton go and just live with the knowledge that, yes the book was informative and I was intrigued, but the time came to move on.