A fourteen-year-old boy stabbed to death in the park is incomprehensible to this insulated and well-heeled population. As prosperous as it is, there is also a provincial air to it, as like-minded families have always experienced security and safety here, and there is an expectation and history of benevolence. Violence is rare. In Massachusetts, fourteen-year-olds charged with first-degree murder are tried as adults. Barber narrates the story with depth and dread, exposing some family secrets along the way, which could impact the case, and creates increasing internal trauma for his wife, Laurie.
Their marriage has always been an ongoing love story; they met as freshmen in college and have loved each other unfailingly through the years. This event mires them in vulnerability and heavy exposure to the media, placing them under a public microscope. Do they really know their son? How much can parents really get inside the soul of their children?
And, no matter how strong a marriage seems, a blow like this can undermine what is truly a fragile trust. Landay has a talent for metaphor and imagery, rendered beautifully in the elegiac narrative. Woven through the story, in the old-school typed transcript of a court reporter, is yet another narrative, of Barber as a witness before the grand jury.
How this fits into the rest of the story is gradually disclosed, and its presence is both suspenseful and revealing. Landay's dialogue is crisply cinematic but organic to the characters.
His flair for teen-speak is spot-on. Jacob, who is largely inscrutable, is developed through the eyes of other characters--and at a slight remove, which adds to the suspense. Is he a cipher? A typical teenager? The unknown X factor of Jacob draws out the detective spirit of the reader.
The character that really blossoms on the pages is Andy, who reveals, through his agony, more than his contained self-assessment. He is a tormented man trying to protect his family, but his tenacity and inexorable faith in his son may have dire consequences.
I read this book in two long sittings, and savored every page. Critically, it is probably a four-star for its flaws , but personally, I greedily devoured every passage, removing my critical cap and capitulating to the subtle narrative. View all 18 comments.
Feb 01, Matt rated it really liked it Shelves: mystery , legal , contemporary-fiction. One strike punctured the heart and would by itself have been fatal. The knife was driven straight in and jerked straight out again, one-two-three, like a bayonet. The weapon had a jagged edge, evidenced by shredding at the left edge of each wound and in the torn shirt fabric.
The angle of entry suggested an attacker about The weapon had not been foun "The boy had been stabbed three times in the chest. The weapon had not been found. There were no defensive wounds: the victim's arms and hands were unmarked While I waited for the amoxicillin to be filled, I wandered over to the magazine rack to do some browsing. I instantly noticed something. Most of the magazines had motorcycles or abdomens on them. Most of the books had abdomens and corsets. There was very little to interest me, and much to make me self-conscious about my stomach.
Not because it looked awesome, but mainly because it didn't look terrible and there were no heaving bosoms on the cover. But the pharmacy was slow, and it was either read Defending Jacob or compare Pedialyte flavors.
Defending Jacob is a great impulse purchase book. It belongs on newsstands or at airports or in dithering pharmacies. The prosecutor must leave his job and join in the defense. This is the kind of high concept plot that can be boiled down to a gripping tagline: Andy Barber used to put criminals in prison…Now he has to keep his son out of one. That tagline is best read in a deeply baritone inner voice.
Defending Jacob is told in the first person by Andy Barber, an experienced assistant district attorney in suburban Massachusetts. His son, fourteen year-old Jacob is the one accused of stabbing a classmate to death and leaving his body in a park. Of course, the result of that trial is artfully hidden by the narrator, which is why I despise the first-person p. In the first paragraph, Andy reveals that he is under grand jury investigation by his old office. This sets up parallel mysteries.
First, is Jacob innocent? Second, why is Andy in front of the grand jury? I am bound to respect how quickly Landay sucked me in with this trick. Because waiting makes me thirsty. As I plunged into Defending Jacob , I wondered-slash-worried about what tropes to expect. Vast conspiracies? Two-thirds of the book is spent outside the courtroom, much of it focused on the Barber family dynamics, as Andy tries to understand the most un-understandable creature on earth: a sullen teenager.
The content of this subplot is far from profound, but I appreciate the fact that the novel has more going on than meets the eye. Landay is a former district attorney, just like his main character…The author bio does not indicate whether his own son is an accused murderer.
Andy Barber hires an actual defense attorney to defend Jacob though he acts as second chair. The attorneys make proper objections. The judge adheres to the rules of evidence.
It is not shocking. Most of the drama comes from the secondary impact of the trial on the Barber family. Defending Jacob is really more the portrait of a family under extreme duress than anything else. Andy is hell-bent on defending his son and is maniacally convinced that another suspect is the actual killer. His wife, Laurie, veers wildly from maternal protectiveness to horrified wariness that her son might actually have committed the crime.
Jacob — well, Jacob is mostly a cipher. This is necessary to built tension, and also because teenagers are inherently uninteresting and not worth thinking about. As I mentioned previously, Defending Jacob tries to tackle some ambitious themes. But when it comes down to it, the novel lives and dies on its story mechanics.
Landay came up with a great idea; everything else comes down to execution. With this kind of book, if you stick the landing, it makes up for all other sins. Defending Jacob is similar to all other legal potboilers in that we are led through a series of twists and turns to the surprise ending. What I really liked about Defending Jacob is not the deviousness of the plot swerves.
Rather, it was that Landay manages — in the final few pages — a climax that is not only surprising, but surprisingly powerful. View all 9 comments. I'm annoyed. As I said in one of my updates, this is an odd book, a psychological thriller with little understanding of psychology. It's written in the first person from the father's point of view. He was very annoying with his stubborn blocking of the truth from himself to his unemotional narration.
If the author meant to convey a kind of underlying emotional tension, he failed miserably. The ending felt like a cheap shot, and I feel cheated. View all 24 comments. View all 4 comments. May 14, Trudi rated it really liked it Shelves: , audiobook , sherwood-picks , rusa-reads , crime-mystery , in-the-courtroom. I'm trying to put my finger on what makes Defending Jacob such a compulsive read.
Landay clearly has a killer storytelling instinct. The pacing of this novel is near perfect. He drops just enough clues, teases with just enough foreshadowing to keep the reader completely engrossed at all times. I started listening to this as an audiobook and finished it in print, not being able to turn the pages fast enough. Defending Jacob is not a unique plot by any stretch. In fact, when I first heard about th I'm trying to put my finger on what makes Defending Jacob such a compulsive read.
In fact, when I first heard about this book I couldn't help but think of the movie Before and After starring Meryl Streep and Liam Neeson, where their teen son Jacob yep, he's Jacob too is accused of murdering his girlfriend and it tears the family apart. This book is much better than that movie though. Defending Jacob does a great job at looking at issues of guilt, innocence and culpability.
It dissects the shortcomings of the legal system and the theatrics of courtroom proceedings without getting all preachy and legal mumbo-jumbo about it. It cuts to the heart of family dynamics and the parent-child relationship, poking at the difficult questions -- how far would you go to protect your child if they were innocent?
And there's the rub -- fourteen year old Jacob is standing trial for murder and we don't know if he's been falsely accused or not. There are things that point to his innocence, but also actions that point to his guilt.
Even though it is a much denser read and told using a very different narrative voice, We Need to Talk About Kevin explores some of the same terrain of mental pathology and the genetic and external factors that combine to result in antisocial behaviors. I liked that this book kept me guessing right up to the end. I loved that when it seemed to be wrapping up, there was one more sharp swerve to the left to come. View all 12 comments. Other than that I found it to be a mediocre read.
View 1 comment. Oct 13, Ahmad Sharabiani rated it really liked it Shelves: united-states , crime-mystery , mystery , 21th-century , fiction. He is investigating the murder of a year-old boy, Ben Rifkin, who was a classmate of his son Jacob. Unsettled, Andy disposes of the knife. The finding shocks Andy and his wife, Laurie, but does not shake their belief in his innocence. Jacob claims that he found Ben dead in the park and tried to revive him.
While Jacob spends the night in jail, Andy reveals to Laurie that his father, Billy Barber, was a convicted murderer and rapist who was serving his life sentence in jail. View all 3 comments. I have had Defending Jacob on my TBR list for awhile and have been waiting for the right time to read it. This was the perfect time. I love when that happens. I found Defending Jacob to be an original, gripping, complex, and an interesting crime thriller as well as emotional and a thought provoking family drama.
What made this an interesting read for me was the combination of the legal side of the crime, the courtroom drama and the emotional family drama of a family in crisis after their son Jaco I have had Defending Jacob on my TBR list for awhile and have been waiting for the right time to read it.
What made this an interesting read for me was the combination of the legal side of the crime, the courtroom drama and the emotional family drama of a family in crisis after their son Jacob is accused of a violent crime. The story is told from devoted, tormented and intelligent former first District Attorney Andy and father to Jacob who fights to save his son, who is after the truth but terrified of it and blinded by his unconditional love for his son.
What a stunning, shocking and unforgettable ending that left me stunned for a moment, I almost dropped my book. Defending Jacob had me asking myself so many questions and I was stunned at the same time. I highly recommend for crime thrillers who like some family drama and for parents who love to be challenged with parenting questions. View all 34 comments. May 07, Dem rated it it was amazing Shelves: favorites , psychological-thrillers , 5-star , top , recommended.
Defending Jacob was a riveting and very enjoyable thriller one that will send chills up your spine. My second read of this novel as just as compelling and unsettling as the first A son accused of Murder and a family on trial. Andy Barbers job is to put killers behind bars and when a boy from his son Jacob's school is found murdered Andy is under pressure to find his killer and prosecute.
When a crucial piece of evidence turns up linking Jacob to the murder the Barbers lives are turned upside down.
This is exactly the sort of Novel I normally stay away from as as having a teenager I sometimes scare away from books like this as feel they make me overthink and thats not a good thing in some cases but this was a group read and therefore I joined in and I loved the book.
I loved the suspensful and twisty plot and I was captivated by authors style of writing, all the complex characters are cleverly and convincingly drawn. A terrific courtroom drama full of suspense and drama. I am normally tight with my 5 stars but this book really made me sit up and think, exclaim out loud and once finished just couldnt put the story out of my head. Second time around the book was just as good as its been a few years since I read it and happy to say still a 5 star read for me.
Mar 07, Mariah Roze rated it it was amazing. This book went through my newsfeed once, a really long time ago, and ever since then I have been wanting to read it.
When I saw it at my library I snatched it up right away. This book did not disappoint! What the book was about: The book is told from the father's point of view, Andy Barber.
He was an assistant district attorney that people loved and adored. He and his wife, Laurie, had an amazing relationship and one child, Jacob. Who was a teenager. All of a sudden, there quiet, peaceful city had This book went through my newsfeed once, a really long time ago, and ever since then I have been wanting to read it.
All of a sudden, there quiet, peaceful city had a stabbing to death of a young boy. Jacob was accused of the murder and his father believes he was innocent.
This book covered all aspects of the Jacob being possibly convicted: evidences, doubts, best friends going against you and so much more. This book kept me on my toes till the very end! There were tons of twists, new information, etc. Dec 31, La-Lionne rated it it was amazing Shelves: not-an-easy-read , triller-suspense-mystery , emotional , mysterious , own , heartbreaking , not-for-the-weak-hearted , creepy , disturbing , with-a-twist.
At least I didn't think so. For me this story was about fathers unconditional love for his son, no matter the outcome. Andy Barber is a 51 year old DA. Has a wife who is a teacher and a 14 year old son, Jacob. Perfect little family. They are well known and respected in their community. One day, he gets a call that a 14 year old boy has been found murdered in the park, not far from school, with 3 st 5 brilliant and heartbreaking stars :- This story isn't about proving Jacob is innocent or guilty.
One day, he gets a call that a 14 year old boy has been found murdered in the park, not far from school, with 3 stab wounds in the chest. He takes on the case. But pretty soon it's clear that it might be conflict of interest.
The police find some incriminating stuff against Jacob, and he becomes a suspect. What comes next, is absolutely heartbreaking. Andy stands down and gives up the case. The whole story is told from fathers point of view. It's starts at the end and can feel a bit confusing.
It's starts with him sitting on a witness stand, talking to a prosecutor. You get the feeling that something big went down, but you don't know what. You also don't know if Jacob has been found guilty or innocent, or what the hell happened. And that's what makes this story a complete page turner. You get to see how their family handles the crisis. It hits hard, all of them, the father, the mother and the son. You see family falling apart. Their marriage went from: At seventeen, I knew: my entire childhood had been just a prelude to this girl.
I had never felt anything like it, and still haven't. I felt changed by her, physically. Not sexually, though we had sex everywhere, like minks, in the library stacks, in an empty classroom, her car, her family's beach house, even a cemetery.
Do you want it or not? So, just to be clear: all I have to do is say I'm wrong and a beautiful woman will make passionate love to me. That's the situation? I'm allowed to stare. The guide themes, chapter outlines and character summaries are more detailed than other sites. The information is chapter specific and so it's easy to target certain things.
Defending Jacob William Landay. Access Full Guide Download Save. Featured Collections. Chapters Character Analysis. Important Quotes. Essay Topics. Overview Defending Jacob is a crime novel by William Landay. Unlock this Study Guide! Join SuperSummary to gain instant access to all 39 pages of this Study Guide and thousands of other learning resources.
If I never dreamed of becoming a writer as a kid, it is only because it would have seemed so preposterous— like saying you were going to become an astronaut or a major-league ballplayer. There were no artists or writers in my world back then. Even now, I feel a little fraudulent using that word to describe myself; I think of myself as just a guy who has written a few books, not a writer. So I consider myself damn lucky to have this job, and I intend to keep it.
It is only a handful of writers who get to earn their living this way. WL: They come at the same time. Plot is just character in action. Character, in the end, is what you actually do. A good novel needs both, of course, and the two should be wrapped as tight as the strands in a rope.
WL: I never, ever think that way. I have heard stories about famous authors who would take their own published books down off the shelf and obsessively rewrite them over and over. I have never felt that urge. I can barely recall the details of the book, never mind feel tempted to rewrite it. As a reader, the incidents in a book feel inevitable. There is a chain of events: A leads to B leads to C.
The reader reacts to that chain in a binary way: either she approves or not. A might lead to B, but it also might lead to a thousand other things. The writer chooses because he has to choose. The story must proceed. But he is never under the illusion that there is a correct or best choice. Every decision is contingent. So he makes his bargain and he moves on. In the case of Defending Jacob, the ending has received a lot of attention, understandably.
But the novel might have ended a differ- ent way—or ten different ways. In fact, the published novel does not end the way my original manuscript did.
There is no way to answer that question. WL: This is a common question and one I hate because my reading is so random. On and on. RHRC: If you had to cite just one novel aspiring writers should read before starting to write their own work, what would it be? WL: I think the answer would be different for everyone. The books that inspired me to write likely would not have the same effect on others.
That is the nature of reading. Those magical, electric reading experiences—the unforgettable books that are seared into us and mark us for life—depend on so many things besides the book itself.
It happens when the right reader opens the right book at just the right moment in her life. It is like dating. All of us who are devoted readers have had the experience of meeting the same book twice and feeling completely different about it.
At eighteen, I hated Moby Dick; at thirty, I was blown away by it. So it goes. Worse, I tend to reread my fa- vorites, especially as I get older. I try to take apart every book to see how it works, how it was built, to see what I can take from it. So I would not presume to tell any aspiring writer what she ought to read. Personally, I have loved Fitzgerald and Hemingway, those polestars of the tender and tough schools of romantic writing.
Roth and Bellow too. I always have Ian McEwan nearby; when I am stuck in my own writing, I often read McEwan just to hear the sound of good English prose and get myself moving again. Works every time. And I have made sure to work in a few classics, especially Dickens.
I read screenplays, as well, to learn about dialogue and how to structure a plot. So that is my haphazard list. At least, it is the bits that come immediately to mind.
The main thing for any aspiring author is: read. Just read. Read anything at all that excites you. If you like junk, read junk. Then go do it your- self. Questions and Topics for Discussion 1. Is Andy a good father?
Why or why not? Do you believe Jacob is guilty? Do you think Neal Logiudice acts ethically in this novel? What about Andy? Related Books and Guides. Joseph Finder. No Second Chance. Harlan Coben.
Gone for Good. Tell No One. The Expats. Chris Pavone. Beyond Reach. Karin Slaughter. Cristina Alger. Cover of Snow. Jenny Milchman.
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