The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult

#17 of 52 – 52 Books in 52 Weeks

Oh Jodi Picoult, why so tortured?

First, let me make it very clear that I think she is a great writer. I’ve read Picoult once before–The Pact–which was, similarly, a very well-written and engaging story…but really, really depressing. The Tenth Circle is pretty much the same.

I like Picoult’s books because she writes about relationships and families in a very realistic way. I just wish I didn’t feel so suicidal after finishing her books. Well, maybe I’m being overly harsh. I suppose it’s good that I have such strong reactions to her novels–this is likely why her books are such excellent fodder for book club discussions. But in The Tenth Circle, I didn’t find myself connecting with any of the characters. They all remained, to me, slightly at a distance. They all, at times, seemed slightly mad. And there was something about them that was unreachable for me. It’s hard to describe.

Also, at one point the story turns into a slight mystery/whodunnit novel, which I hadn’t expected and didn’t really enjoy, especially when the person is revealed at the end. I found that rather predictable and anti-climactic. I guess, ultimately, when I read a book, I want to find one character–at least–with whom I can identify, or otherwise care about in some way. Sadly, with this book, I didn’t. I found the whole plot unfortunate and pitiful, and I had the sense that something was missing. Now I realize that I just didn’t connect with any of the characters, so that left me with a very distracted, detached reading experience. At points in the second half to final third of the book, I felt the story was unnecessarily long and labored. It felt like work to keep reading.

I will say, though, that Picoult used an interesting device that held my attention. One of the main characters is an artist, and the book is interspersed with the graphic novel he is drawing throughout the course of the story. The graphic novel compliments the plot, and I thought that was a unique addition to the book. Not only this, but I quickly noticed that there were randomly placed letters in each of the panels; turns out that the letters spell out a quote that sums up The Tenth Circle‘s theme. I managed to find all the letters (over 80, I think) and headed over to Jodi Picoult’s website to check and see if I got the quote right. (I did!)

Despite that fun part at the end, unfortunately, I wish I could have enjoyed the book overall. I wanted to care about her characters more–especially since this doesn’t have quite a happy ending. It’s rather ambiguous, but when I was done, I essentially closed the book and moved on. Except to write this post, I haven’t given it much thought since.