Salem Falls

By: Jodi Picoult

Narrated by: Julia Gibson

Length: 18 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

From number-one New York Times best-selling author Jodi Picoult comes a compelling and disturbing novel about a prep school teacher accused of rape by a group of young girls, the woman who stands by him, and the repercussions of the case in a small New England town where the past is only a heartbeat away.

Love can redeem a man...but secrets and lies can condemn him.

A handsome stranger comes to the sleepy New England town of Salem Falls in hopes of burying his past: Once a teacher at a girls' prep school, Jack St. Bride was destroyed when a student's crush sparked a powder keg of accusation. Now, washing dishes for Addie Peabody at the Do-or-Diner, he slips quietly into his new routine, and Addie finds this unassuming man fitting easily inside her heart. But amid the rustic calm of Salem Falls, a quartet of teenage girls harbor dark secrets - and they maliciously target Jack with a shattering allegation.

Now, at the center of a modern-day witch hunt, Jack is forced once again to proclaim his innocence: to a town searching for answers, to a justice system where truth becomes a slippery concept written in shades of gray, and to the woman who has come to love him.

©2001 Jodi Picoult. All rights reserved (P)2016 Simon & Schuster Audio, Inc. All rights reserved.

Loved the story until the last paragraph.

I love Jodi Picoult books, always have. I love that she gets into the uncomfortable and ugly sides of things.

I loved this book until the final paragraph. I thought the end went too far and that it was an entirely unnecessary addition.

It totally tarnished the entire book for me. It went from being a book I couldn’t put down to a book I wouldn’t even recommend to friends or family.

Full of filler

This book is full of unnecessary details. The story could have been good but was dragged out so much I found it hard to pay attention. If this hadn't been an audible purchase I wouldn't have finished it. The best part is the last sentence of the book.

Old School Jodi Picoult- Refreshing!

Enter Salem Falls, a sleepy town in New England where nothing much happens. An ex-con, convicted of rape has taken up at the local restaurant as a dishwasher. He served 8 months in prison, and when he is forced to register as a sex offender, the small town lights up with gossip.

Things get worse when a young girl in town accuses him of rape, and he awaits his day in court.

Salem Falls is written in the typical 'Picoult' fashion. We have an uncomfortable situation, a person with a possible wrong conviction, and a courtroom drama. The tale is woven intricately until we find out what really happened to the girl, and whether the town's new visitor is guilty, or not.

I enjoyed Salem Falls because it was written eighteen years ago and I loved Picoult's earlier work. I am not a fan of her latest books at all, and this is the only 'older' one I hadn't read or listened to.

Recommended.

-Wendi

Excellent book!

Once again, I found myself delighted by another of mrs Picoult's books.
Beautiful characters, credible story and last minute twist, it's all there....

Mind The Details

This one was more challenging for me to get into & enjoy. Interesting to see/hear others ideas on subjects I hold dear. Then just when you think it's a happy ending you get tossed surprise.

Excellent Book! Highly Recommend

Great story up to the last word. Narrator is perfect for this one. Well done.

Not Picoult's best work.

Not Picoult's best work. There are too many characters woven together in the present and in the past.... and the all have common names like Jack, Charlie, and Matt.

Great!!!

As all her books - this one was so thought provoking and kept me listening even when I really had to turn the engine off and get to the office.

unexpected turns throughout

there were few characters that were unlikable. Mostly, I was cheering for all of them which made for a very interesting listen. I highly recommend this book. it's a love story, a drama, and a bit of a thriller.

Predictable

Well written as all of her novels. Disturbing, again, as usual. But somewhere in the middle I knew how it would end - what the secret was. And I was right.

Boring and predictable

I have read and loved every one of Picoult's books but found this one to be so very disappointing. The characters were hard to sympathise with and the storyline and pace were slow and left me disinterested in the outcome- which I had guessed early on. I only continued to the end to see if I was right.
Perhaps Picoult sounds better in my own voice as the narration grated intensely. I want to mention a positive, but I can't find one.....

Always a Good Listen

So glad I found this book on audible, I read the paper back many years ago then lent it out and it never got returned. Life moved on and then I rediscovered it on Audible. Great story, twists and turns and a very dark sub story that gets revealed in a series of little chinks you barely notice which I had forgotten about. Jodi is on of the modern day great authors!

disappointed

okay so, if you're a Jodi picoult fan this may be a 4 for you. I know Jodi always loves to give a voice to the minorities in situations (in this story the assaulter) but this was just nonsensical. I cannot believe this got so many good reviews. I'm actually a bit annoyed I read it.


SPOILER ALERT:
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Jack was painted as this angel. Gillian a Ludwell which, how backwards can this get? jodi picoult chose representations that were so predictable and many pedophiles beliefs about themselves where really emphasized in this book. would have been more believable if Jack wasn't painted out so perfectly and gilly so evil. it felt discrediting to every abused and wrongfully accused bc the back story was just so ridiculous that I can't even believe that was the full story. anyway this is me giving up on reading Jodi Picoult. Great writer, questionable research in this case. also read 3 books now and all feeling way too familiar

Stunning writing .....

Such a beautifully written and narrated book. I listened over a few days and it’s been a long time since a book gripped me like this one did.

Should have been shorter.

Obviously not a nice story line from any perspective. It was predictable. There were lots of flashbacks to earlier parts of the characters lives, which I thought were intended to give some depth to them, to explain the characters a bit more or flesh out why things happened but they were just pointless.

Also there’s a lot of “living in glasshouses” scenarios going on which were extremely obvious, went unnoticed, were not resolved and went unpunished, which was extremely unsatisfactory.

Predictable and irritatingly unrealistic.

Usually love Jodi P. This was tosh. Initial part of the story I could just about go with. The rest, I didn’t listen to. Unbelievable.

So long, lots of boring pointless detail

I feel like she was paid by the word. The back story about his dad dying and his mothers crusade and the 9 year old girl and his baseball cards when he was ten, for heavens sake! Would be an ok story if about half was edited out. Also the big reveal (revealed only to us) was obvious and a disappointingly missed opportunity. OH, and so much of the gender politics etc (even in the not flashback sections) are so way out of date.

excellent

great story, gripping and warm. as usual it covers subjects that are powerful and inspiring.

Sooooo good.

Really invested in the characters and the plot, as always with Jodi Picoult- fantastic.

A bit of slog.

The storyline was quite good. The twist pretty obvious. But the main thing I didn't like about it, without spoilers, was the characterisations of the female characters.