<p>In the past few weeks I have read three of Jodi Picoult’s books. Started with Nineteen Minutes because one of my daughters was reading it (her english teacher recommended it). Then I found myself in airports and picked up Perfect Match and The Tenth Circle. I have to say these are in some ways good airplane books–not too deep, the plot moves quickly, the characters are pretty interesting. But here is the gripe: the surprise plot twists at the end just ruin the books for me. Way too convenient and unrealistic. Anyone else have this reaction?</p>
<p>YES, YES, YES, YES!!!</p>
<p>I have finally given up reading her books for this very reason. I agree they are light reading, but I generally have a hard time putting her books down. But then, I get to the end and BAM! again with the disappointing ending!</p>
<p>My Sister’s Keeper is especially egregious in this regard.</p>
<p>I read My Sister’s Keeper first, and found it amazing and compelling. But as I read more of her later books, I kind of get the sense that since she had a lot of success with that formula the first time, she is repeating it… (Okay, I am not even sure My Sister’s Keeper was her first book, but I know it was an early one…). I still read some of them, but don’t feel compelled to buy or put on hold when a new one comes out.</p>
<p>I used to love Jodi Picoult’s books. I chose My Sister’s Keeper for my book club. Many of our members agreed with you. I feel like her newer books have me just braced for the plot twist so now I am not as in love with her work.</p>
<p>My 14 year old DD just finished My Sister’s Keeper which my older DD and I had read a couple of years ago. I only read the book because my DD suggested it and have not read another book by her. My younger DD started another one of her books and just today told me she was not finishing it as she didn’t think she was going to like the characters in it.</p>
<p>My Sister’s Keeper certainly brought up some good dinner table discussions. Both DDs hated the Mother in the book, but I told them I had a very different view from theirs in that I am a Mother and I can understand wanting to do anything for your child.</p>
<p>If anyone is looking for a good bookclub book I just finished The Thirteenth Tale (bookclub is next week for me) and really liked it!</p>
<p>ebeeee-I agree. The first book I read was The Pact back when my oldest was in 9th grade. She enjoyed it and passed it on to me. I also liked Salem Falls and the one about the Amish. They were easy to read and enjoyable. I have not enjoyed the last 3 or 4 books. I recently bought the last one after a good friend raved about it. I found it okay but nothing special. I could have easily waited for the library copy.</p>
<p>I’ve read every book that Jodi Picoult has written starting with Songs of the Humpback Whale. She’s written 16 books. I’ve got the same complaint about the plot twist endings and have come to the conclusion that her editor is not editing enough. I loved The Pact, Salem Falls and Plain Truth.</p>
<p>Yeah but how exactly do you edit out a plot twist?</p>
<p>I think it’s a case of looking for a better ending. Something that gives resolution and finality without being unsupported throughout the book. I really disliked Nineteen Minutes because I don’t think the girl really did what she admitted, or claimed to admit at the end.</p>
<p>I swore, after the end of “My Sister’s Keeper” that I would never buy another of her books, and I haven’t. It was a shame as the first 90% of the book I actually liked.</p>
<p>I picked up Change of Heart this week to take on a trip this weekend. Was it a bad mistake?</p>
<p>I have read almost all of her books, mostly in published order. So after a few I knew to expect some odd ball plot twist late in the book. But I keep reading as I do enjoy how she takes on and picks apart some interesting topics. I think I enjoyed the earlier books more.</p>
<p>Change of Heart…I think I may have hit Picoult overload, or just wasn’t in the right mood. I called the plot twist long before I got to it. I kept putting it down. I’ll wait a bit before I pick up the next one.</p>
<p>I was a big fan for awhile too! I liked the first few Picoult books I read – I think the first one was about the Amish. And I bought it an airport. It was perfect for airplane reading. I liked 19 minutes, My Sister’s Keeper and The Pact – partly because it felt like I was eve dropping on the teenage world the way she writes. I tried to read another book, though, and couldn’t get past the first few chapters. Maybe I hit Picoult overload. She definitely follows a formula, it works better for some topics than others, or perhaps she sometimes is better about fleshing out the formula, making the characters more interesting, and other times less successful.</p>
<p>Having done some creative writing (in my youth! No time now… only time to write posts on CC 
), I remember that the ending was always the hardest part by far to write. Not excusing the reliance on the “plot twist” at all. Just saying that I could handle the intro and the middle of the story just find, but always got bogged down at the end.</p>
<p>Picoult says that she always knows the entire plot before she starts writing. So she has these twists planned from the start.</p>
<p>I generally have liked her books, but I really have to space them out…can’t read them back-to-back.</p>
<p>My favorites from her were “My Sister’s Keeper”, “Change of Heart” and “Second Glance”. Her newest book “Handle with Care” really annoyed me. I wanted someone to be likeable (other than the kid in the middle of things), but I couldn’t latch on to any of them.</p>