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Salem Falls

by Jodi Picoult (Goodreads Author)

3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 · rating details · 36,969 ratings · 2,094 reviews

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 hi...more

Paperback, 434 pages

Published August 6th 2002 by Washington Square Press (first published April 3rd 2001)

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Mar 15, 2009 Brad rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery

I'm not a likely candidate to read a Jodi Picoult book. I have to admit that I've always been a bit of a snob when it comes to the books that my Mom read.

She was a big fan of mysteries, but nothing classic (no Christie or Doyle), very little new or challenging (no Steinhauer or Rankin), and practically nothing genuinely pulpy (no Leonard or Chandler). She always preferred the uber-popular stuff and was a massive fan of James Patterson (and his peers), having to go out and buy the books from his...more

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Apr 26, 2007 Rosey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Another good book of Picoult's. This time, it was about an innocent teacher who was accused of sexual misconducts with a female student and had gotten out of prison for serving time on that. He moved into a new town, and unfortunately soon, everyone knew of his past and the accusations started up again. He was also innocent this time around. He had drunkenly stumbled across a group of girls who were out in the woods celebrating a Wiccan holiday, and their lies landed him in jail. With thanks to...more

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Jan 30, 2011 Shawn rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-favorites, own, mom-picks, 2009-reads, signed-copies

At first glance Salem Falls is intimidating. The print is small, the book is thick, and once you've dipped a toe into the pages you soon realize that the topic is delicate on top of everything else. It starts off as a slowly progressing story about a man, Jack, who has a past he clearly wishes to leave behind him. He finds himself in the presence of a woman, Addie, with an equally broken past who wishes just as much as Jack does to ignore it. But as with any story and its hidden secrets they are...more

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Jun 24, 2008 Yvonne rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

A most frustrating book. It is written on a formula perfect for Lifetime TV for women. It is clearly intended to be an issue oriented novel on the subject of the abuse of Megan's law and false accusations. The subject is not an easy one to deal with.

I didn't like the graphic sex or the bad language. I didn't like the choppy style of jumping from one point of view to another without a transition. It was difficult to follow. Although the author apparently wanted a sensational surprise at the endi...more

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Mar 24, 2009 Christina rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009-reads

Salem Falls is easily one of my favorite Jodi Picoult book - one part romance, one part courtroom thriller, two parts social commentary, to quote The Dallas Morning News. This time she tackles Megan’s Law - law enforcement is required to make information available to the public regarding registered sex offenders - and how people are presumed guilty until proven innocent, instead of the other way around.

“When I was lying, they hung on every word. And when I told the truth, no one listened.” {pg....more

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Dec 13, 2008 Shelah rated it 1 of 5 stars

I wasted most of this weekend reading Salem Falls, the story of Jack, a high school history teacher who tries to start his life again after being wrongly accused of sexual assault, only to have the whole thing happen again in the new town. It was an easy read, an engrossing story, but there were parts of the story that drove me crazy. For one thing-- the dates were constantly off. For example, Jack's love interest Addie had a daughter who died some time in the past. At one point, they said she'd...more

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Sep 06, 2008 Tina rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Nancy

Recommended to Tina by: Shanna

It is so hard for me not to completely immerse myself in Jodi Picoult's books and ignore the passing of time. I read this in one day--couldn't put it down. I love the way she develops characters to the point that I feel their pain.

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Jan 02, 2009 Ryan Mac rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have read nearly all of Jodi Picoult's books now (I couldn't get through Second Glance) and this was actually one of her better ones, even though it was extremely ridiculous at times. It is a somewhat convoluted story but basically comes down to this: Jack St. Bride, a teacher and soccer coach, is accused of sexual assault by a student, takes a plea and spends time in jail. Upon getting out of jail, he wants to start a new life and lands in Salem Falls at a diner with Addie, a lady who hires J...more

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May 06, 2011 Imas rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: karya-perempuan

Satu lagi buku Jodi Picoult yang aku suka. Jatuh cinta dengan Jodi Picoult sejak membaca My Sister Keeper, lalu Perfect Match dan selanjutnya perburuan karya2 Picoult lainnya. Seorang guru dan pelatih sepak bola disekolah khusus putri Jack St. Bride dibebaskan dari penjara setelah menjalani hukuman atas tuduhan penyerangan seksual terhadap salah satu siswi sekaligus atlit sepak bola yang dilatihnya. Jack menjalani hukuman selama 9 bulan setelah mendapat pertimbangan hukum dari pengacarany auntuk...more

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Jul 27, 2010 Mari Biella rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of fast-paced drama

I must admit, before picking this book up I'd never read Jodi Picoult before. I knew she was wildly popular, prolific and highly-praised for her work, and people had been recommending her to me for years, so I thought I'd finally take the plunge.

Was it worth it?

Well, yes and no. Firstly, there's no doubt about it: Salem Falls is a fast-paced page-turner with more twists and turns than a rollercoaster ride. Nor is Picoult shy of dealing with those contentious topics - rape, incest, the shortcomi...more I must admit, before picking this book up I'd never read Jodi Picoult before. I knew she was wildly popular, prolific and highly-praised for her work, and people had been recommending her to me for years, so I thought I'd finally take the plunge.

Was it worth it?

Well, yes and no. Firstly, there's no doubt about it: Salem Falls is a fast-paced page-turner with more twists and turns than a rollercoaster ride. Nor is Picoult shy of dealing with those contentious topics - rape, incest, the shortcomings of the legal system - that fluffier fiction will not touch. And there's a strong moral here, namely that we shouldn't pre-judge people until we know the facts. Besides, this is good entertainment value, with a cleverly-constructed plot; it's well-written for the most part, and if you're looking for a relatively undemanding read this could be for you.

But ... somehow, I'm just underwhelmed. I prefer my novels to have a bit of depth, and this, for all its glittering lights and colours, just seemed to be all surface. I mean, some of these characters are so flat! One-dimensional, walking, talking marionettes, they seem to exist solely to flesh out Picoult's narrative. Take our hero, Jack St Bride - is this character one of the most shameful examples of authorial wish-fulfillment ever? He's so incredibly handsome that just about every woman he encounters falls madly in love with him. He's strong - but gentle. He's intelligent - but sensitive. He's the best teacher ever. He rescues helpless damsels from oversexed footballers. He comforts a grieving mother. Oh, and he's rich too. In fact, he quickly comes to resemble a sort of modern-day secular saint: think Princess Diana with a Y-chromosome. Does this man have any flaws at all? Well, he gets a bit annoyed at being falsely accused all the time. In fact, he almost gets angry on one occasion. Wow - that's depth for you.

Besides, all these characters are so moronically stupid! Addie, despite a painful past involving a rape, wastes no time in falling for a complete stranger, despite the fact that he's very clearly hiding some dark secret. Teenage girls respond to Jack's rejection by making false accusations against him, apparently unaware of or indifferent to the hornets' nest this will stir up. Same teenage girls deliberately take a massive overdose of poison during their Wiccan ceremonies, oblivious to the fact that, as they're in the middle of the woods, there'll be no medical help forthcoming if it all goes horribly wrong. Even Jack (who's meant to be really clever, apparently because he's good at a TV trivia quiz) can't work out that some relationships with teenage girls, while not sexual, may nevertheless be inappropriate. I mean, driving an underage girl off to get birth control pills?! (Oh, and by the way, Einstein - if you're a convicted sex offender, it's probably not a good idea to hang around near school sports fields accosting teenage girls.)

So ... meh. It wasn't that bad, and it wasn't that great either. Oh, and another thing - the much-lauded final twist can be seen coming a mile away, so don't get too excited about that, either.(less)

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Mar 07, 2010 Shy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2010, books-i-own, genre_realisticfiction

Salem Falls is definitely my favourite book by Picoult thus far. She had – again – successfully incorporated a tinge of romance, a tinge of courtroom drama and a tinge of mystery into her writing, which in the end, made up a beautifully written story. As the other books by Jodi Picoult, this is another issue-oriented novel in which she tried to bring forward topics such as Megan’s Law abuse (A law that requires law enforcement to make information regarding registered sex offender available to pu...more Salem Falls is definitely my favourite book by Picoult thus far. She had – again – successfully incorporated a tinge of romance, a tinge of courtroom drama and a tinge of mystery into her writing, which in the end, made up a beautifully written story. As the other books by Jodi Picoult, this is another issue-oriented novel in which she tried to bring forward topics such as Megan’s Law abuse (A law that requires law enforcement to make information regarding registered sex offender available to public) and false accusations to readers’ eyes.

In Salem Falls, we were introduced to a character, Jack St. Bride, who spent eight months of his life behind the bars over crime he didn’t commit. When he arrived in the small town of Salem Falls, New Hampshire, all he intended to do was to run away from his past and start anew. Landed a job as a dishwasher at a local diner, romance soon started to bud between him and Addie Peabody, the diner’s owner. As the thing from Jack’s past was made public, the people of Salem Falls treated Jack with such hatred. Through this ordeal, the relationship between him and Addie continued to blossom and they learnt quite a lot of heartbreaking things about each other. However, when a girl from a Wiccan group that practiced Pagan ritual accused Jack of raping her, everything began to shatter. Jack relived his nightmare once again but this time, he swore to himself that he won’t plead guilty like he did before. Will he survive against this brutal allegation this time?

Diving into this book was like peeling an onion. Secrets were carefully revealed, layer by layer, as you go through page after page. The plot was well thought out and seriously engaging. Even though it was a little obvious how the trial might end, the whole processes and characters behaviours made me thoroughly involved with the story. The revelation about Wiccan and their ritual really caught my interest because I’ve never really heard of this thing. Besides that, there was also a shocking revelation towards the end of the book which made me read back few chapters and reanalyse certain characters motives This book was totally unputdownable and the fact that I finished it in one day really tells a lot.(less)

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Dec 17, 2008 Alisha rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: drama, mystery

The novel "Salem Falls" is about Jack St. Bride who was falsely accused of raping one of his students. He then moves to the town of Salem Falls and when he starts to get comfortable, the past catches up to him as he finds himself accused of rape a second time.

When the town originally find out that Jack St. Bride is a registered sex offender, they look at him through condemned eyes and try to run him out of town. It is a witchhunt led by Amos Duncan, the richest man in town. When his own daughter...more

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May 02, 2008 Nilanjona rated it 4 of 5 stars

Picoult's books always make you think, and show you how there are many sides to just one issue. On the surface, Salem Falls is the story of a modern-day witchhunt in the form of a rape trial, but it's really the backstories of the characters that make the book what it is. Her style of writing is unpretentious but definitely carries a strong message. From the beginning, it is fairly obvious how the rape trial will end. However, it is the entire process of the trial and the actions of each charact...more

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May 31, 2007 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: library

I loved Picoult's Plain Truth, so every once in a while, I read another of her novels, hoping to recapture the magic. It hasn't worked so far, although I did like Salem Falls better than My Sister's Keeper. Salem Falls is about what happens after a man falsely convicted of statutory rape finishes his prison sentence and tries to start a new life. Unsurprisingly, his past catches up with him and he becomes accused again. Picoult creates several interesting characters in this book, as well as seve...more

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Aug 13, 2007 Stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars

I actually managed to devour this book quicker than I thought I would be able to. I used to be Wiccan myself before I, sadly, drifted apart from the belief. J.P. does a wonderful job of spinning the truth about modern witchcraft and in doing so, creates characters that I just wasn't sure what to make of.

For the first half of the novel, I looked at Jack as nothing but a loser who got dealt a crappy hand when he managed to get caught for a crime he surely committed. Then I changed my tone to maybe...more

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Jan 02, 2009 Jenny rated it 2 of 5 stars

I need new reading material and I saw this authors books over at a friends house so I thought I'd try her out. I see Emily has read a lot of them, so I've got to go see if the library has them.

Okay, I couldn't stomach this book because the basic story is these girls lie about a man raping one of them. They totally set him up and I just couldn't take it. I read several of her other books, and if I wasn't LDS, I might think they were good. But there was more swearing and sex than I think really ap...more

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Mar 27, 2012 Kim Briggs added it

I just couldn't finish it--I guess I'm used to young adult books now. The length of the book just didn't go well with the preparation of my own manuscript. Sorry.

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Mar 19, 2013 Dolors rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012

A typical thriller with all the necessary ingredients to make an entertaining reading.
Jack is a young man who paid the unfair price of a defective legal system. Incarcerated eight months for a crime he didn't commit, he seeks refuge in a quiet place to start anew and arrives one morning in Salem Falls with nothing in his pockets.
Addie has her own ghosts, but when she meets Jack, she accepts him without any questions and he starts working at her Cafeteria.
It's not long until feelings start to ari...more

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Feb 16, 2013 Bookguide rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is the first Jodi Picoult novel I had read, and I was slightly apprehensive, as so many people are such fans of her books. I also recently sat in at a book club meeting where another of her books was discussed, and people commented that they felt that the author was trying to “push their buttons” to elicit an emotional response to the events, and deliberately introducing highly emotive incidents or controversial subjects. In the case of ‘Salem Falls’, one of the major themes is witchcraft,...more This is the first Jodi Picoult novel I had read, and I was slightly apprehensive, as so many people are such fans of her books. I also recently sat in at a book club meeting where another of her books was discussed, and people commented that they felt that the author was trying to “push their buttons” to elicit an emotional response to the events, and deliberately introducing highly emotive incidents or controversial subjects. In the case of ‘Salem Falls’, one of the major themes is witchcraft, or at least, the practice of wicca. The author seems to accept that a group of girls has a certain level of supernatural power into which they can tap, hence curing one man of a serious illness and causing one in an unpleasant schoolmate. Wicca is supposed to be used for good, but the four girls in this story seem to have forgotten this, and use it to manipulate other people and influence their fortunes and emotions.

Not only is ‘Salem Falls’ a page-turner, it is also builds up several characters with enough personality to make the reader care about them, with descriptions of their thoughts and motives for habits and courses of action which are not necessarily logical and straightforward, but reveal their insecurities and desire to spare the feelings of other people. Hence Jack tries to ignore his feelings for Addie, and Addie continues to live her life in the past. The story is used to demonstrate some of the shortcomings of the justice system, in particular the fact that in spite of being innocent, Jack was persuaded to plead guilty in order to reduce his sentence, and in the hope of being acquitted.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Sometimes bestsellers, particularly those written by American authors, can be written in a very irritating style, but I had no problems with the way this was written. The story held my interest until the end, the characters were engaging, and I'm sure it will make a great film (if it hasn't been made into one already).

http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/7...(less)

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Dec 31, 2012 Kathleen Hagen added it

Shelves: 2012-audio-books

Salem Falls, by Jodi Picoult, b-plus, Narrated by Julia Gibson, Produced by recorded Books, Downloaded from audible.com.

Picoult’s push button issue this time: a man, Jack St. Bride, a popular soccer coach in a private girls prep school, is falsely accused of sexually assaulting one of his highschool students. He pleads guilty because his lawyer tells him it’s better to plead, even if he isn’t guilty, in order to get a lesser sentence. Jack is released from prison after eight months but now he is...more

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Dec 23, 2012 Basma Naiisseh rated it 5 of 5 stars

In this book, Jodi Picoult explores two controversial issues in today's world: student-teacher relationships and witchcraft. The first is a loaded topic, symbolised in this story by Jack, a high school teacher previously accused of sexually harassing a female student, and who is now being accused, for the second time, of inappropriate conduct with a different girl in a different town. Picoult gives no reason to the reader to believe that Jack would have committed the crime not only this second t...more

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Dec 20, 2012 Cloudy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: crime-and-thriller

Die Hexenjagd von Salem Falls
Wenn man Liebhaber US Amerikanischer Strafprozesse ist, kann man dieses Buch getrost lesen. Zumindest spielt ein nicht unerheblicher Teil des Buches vor Gericht und demonstriert die Beweisführungskünste von Staatsanwaltschaft und Verteidigung.
Der Prozess, der am Ende des Romans steht, hat eine Vorgeschichte:
Salem Falls, eine kleine, verschlafene Stadt im Staat New Hampshire.
Jack, Anfang 30, ein verurteilter Sexualstraftäter, will nach seiner Haftentlassung dort ein...more Die Hexenjagd von Salem Falls
Wenn man Liebhaber US Amerikanischer Strafprozesse ist, kann man dieses Buch getrost lesen. Zumindest spielt ein nicht unerheblicher Teil des Buches vor Gericht und demonstriert die Beweisführungskünste von Staatsanwaltschaft und Verteidigung.
Der Prozess, der am Ende des Romans steht, hat eine Vorgeschichte:
Salem Falls, eine kleine, verschlafene Stadt im Staat New Hampshire.
Jack, Anfang 30, ein verurteilter Sexualstraftäter, will nach seiner Haftentlassung dort ein neues Leben beginnen. Er findet Arbeit als Küchenhilfe in einem Diner.
Jack war vor über einem Jahr wegen Verführung einer Minderjährigen in der Stadt Loyal zu einer Haftstrafe verurteilt worden. Man hatte ihm, dem beliebten Lehrer und Coach der Hockeymannschaft vorgeworfen, seine Schülerin Catherine Marsh sexuell missbraucht zu haben. Es gab einen Deal mit der Staatsanwaltschaft, woraufhin sich Jack notgedrungen schuldig bekannte, um einer noch höheren Strafe zu entgehen.
Was keiner wusste war, dass Catherine Marsh ihn aus enttäuschter Liebe heraus angezeigt hatte und ihre Aussage bei der Polizei erfunden war.
Addie, die Inhaberin des Diners, verliebt sich in Jack. Sie wurde als junges Mädchen selbst von Jugendlichen des Dorfs vergewaltigt und war mit einem Mädchen schwanger geworden, das sie allein aufzog. Leider verstarb Chloé früh an einer Meningitis. Über ihren Tod, an dem sie sich selbst die Schuld gab, kam Addie nie hinweg.
In Salem Falls spricht sich schnell herum, dass Jack einschlägig vorbestraft ist. Die Bewohner der Kleinstadt fürchten um ihre Kinder und wollen Jack lieber früher als später loswerden.
Allen voran Amos Duncan, Chef der Pharmafabrik des Ortes, der selbst eine 17 jährige Tochter hat, die er nach dem frühen Tod seiner Frau allein aufzieht.
Gillian hingegen fühlt sich sehr zu Jack hingezogen. Sie und ihre gleichaltrigen Freundinnen Meg, Whitney und Chelsea praktizieren seit längerem heimlich einen Hexenkult und verabreden, Gillian dabei zu unterstützen, Jack für sich zu gewinnen.
An einem Abend wird Jack von Unbekannten zusammengeschlagen. Addie kümmert sich um ihn, wirft ihn aber kurze Zeit später im Streit aus dem Haus. Jack betrinkt sich in der nahe gelegenen Kneipe. Auf dem Heimweg sieht er auf einer Lichtung ein Feuer und 4 Mädchen, die fast nackt um das Feuer herum tanzen. Es ist der 30. April, Mitternacht, und es sind Gillian und ihre Freundinnen, die den Beltane Brauch zelebrieren, die Vereinigung eine Frau mit einem Mann. Gillian hat es dabei auf Jack abgesehen. Sie lockt ihn zum Feuer und Jack weiß später nicht mehr was genau geschehen ist. Er läuft zurück zu Addie. Am nächsten Tag wird er wegen Vergewaltigung von Gillian verhaftet. Er wird verhört und beteuert seine Unschuld. Er kann sich an den Abend nur bruchstückhaft erinnern, streitet aber eine Vergewaltigung ab.
Addie ist in einem Gefühlszwiespalt. Sie fährt auf eigene Faust nach Loyal, der Ort in dem Jack das erste Mal ein Mädchen vergewaltigt haben soll, um die Wahrheit heraus zu finden. Sie liest das Urteil und trifft auf Catherine Marsh, die ihr die wahre Geschichte beichtet.
Jordan McAffee, ehemaliger Staranwalt, der sich in Salem Falls zurück gezogen hat und eigentlich keine Strafverteidigung mehr übernehmen wollte, wird als Jacks Pflichtverteidiger bestellt. Ankläger ist der brillante Matt Houlihan, der selbst eine kleine Tochter hat und nur darauf brennt, Jack hinter Schloss und Riegel zu bringen. Jordan ist zunächst aus Prinzip nicht von der Unschuld seines Mandanten überzeugt. Eine Blutprobe bringt jedoch ans Licht, dass Gillian zur Tatzeit Atropin im Blut hatte, was als Halluzinogen wirkt. Zudem ergibt die DNA-Analyse, dass das auf der Haut von Gillian entdeckte Sperma nicht unbedingt vom Angeschuldigten stammen muss.
Jordan erdenkt sich eine komplizierte Verteidigungsstrategie aus, bei der er nicht unerheblich von seiner Ex- Freundin und Ermittlerin Selena unterstützt wird. Bis zum Ende des Prozesses ist nicht klar, ob er die Jury von der Unschuld seines Mandanten überzeugen kann.
Die Thematik des Romans ist interessant allerdings auch komplex und verwoben. Erst am Ende wird klar, dass Gillian ein Inzestopfer ihres eigenen Vaters ist und dass Megs Vater einer der Jungen war, der die damals noch minderjährige Addie vergewaltigten. Darauf gab es leider in den vorangegangenen Kapiteln keine verständlichen Hinweise. Ich hätte mir sehr noch eine vertiefte Darstellung der Tochter/Vater Beziehung der Duncans gewünscht und weniger Nebenschauplätze. Die Ausführungen vor Gericht sind nicht uninteressant, aber allein die Kreuzverhörsituationen ermüden irgendwann.

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Jul 24, 2012 Jade rated it 3 of 5 stars

I felt this book did not have quite the twist to its ending as My Sister's Keeper, but it was a good read nonetheless. The book, in essence, was not about the trial of a man charged with rape. But rather the difficulty of starting afresh in a society where one is not given the benefit of doubt.
Having been previously mischarged of rape, Jack is faced with the mistrust of the town when it becomes public knowledge. Even though before this point, the townspeople liked him and wished him no harm. Th...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Gabriela rated it 4 of 5 stars

I find Picoult's novels always a little difficult to review since there's some element that either I don't like, or didn't expect. But then, that's a mark of a good book, isn't it?

I was really hoping Jack was going to end up alright. I've realized that Picoult usually has happyish endings, that are satisfying to the reader. They're not perfect, but truth and goodness typically win at the end.

The ending...I had my suspicions about (view spoiler)...more

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Apr 25, 2012 Emma K rated it 1 of 5 stars

I read “Salem Falls” by Jodi Picoult. The main character, Jack St. Bride loves his job of teaching high school social studies. What he loves most about his job is the soccer team that he gets to coach each fall. Even though he is very young, he is content with his life and all aspects of it. Until his star soccer player accuses him of sexually assaulting her. Jack is blown away by this horrifying accusation. The court finds him guilty of the crime and he gets sent to jail for 8 months. When Jac...more I read “Salem Falls” by Jodi Picoult. The main character, Jack St. Bride loves his job of teaching high school social studies. What he loves most about his job is the soccer team that he gets to coach each fall. Even though he is very young, he is content with his life and all aspects of it. Until his star soccer player accuses him of sexually assaulting her. Jack is blown away by this horrifying accusation. The court finds him guilty of the crime and he gets sent to jail for 8 months. When Jack gets out of jail, he wants to start over. He doesn’t want anyone to know of the crime he was accused of. As it’s written in the book, “Several miles into his journey, Jack St. Bride decided to give up on his former life.” (Picoult 1) Jack finds a quiet peaceful town where no one knows him so that he can start all over. This becomes impossible, though, when the everyone in the town finds out that Jack went to jail for sexual assault. Even though Jack has always portrayed himself as a respectful, kind man, the fear of what Jack was accused of doing changes the citizens. Parents don’t allow their children out after dark anymore, rumors start flying about Jack, and everyone’s nervous of what Jack might do next. When Jack is accused of sexually assaulting another girl, everyone in the town turns hatefully him, even those who Jack called friends. As Jodi Picoult states in this book “A lie [takes] two parties- the weaver of the tale, and the sucker who so badly wanted to believe it.” (Picoult 224)
This book was flooded with detail and descriptions. Picoult put frequent similes and metaphors in her writing so that you were always bogged down of something was like or what it could be compared to. Not what it was. “Words are like eggs dropped from great heights; you can no more call them back than ignore the mess they leave when they fall.” (Picoult 125) The repetitiveness and dragging out of events made the plot hard to follow and dull. This was a book written to have suspense, without any suspense in it.
I give this book a one out of 5 stars. When I first started reading it, I though that it would be alright, not my favorite book in the world, but worthy of reading. As I kept going, it just dragged on and on. If writing a book review hadn’t been necessary, I wouldn’t have kept going with this book. (less)

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Nov 21, 2011 Christina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Salem Falls, New Hampshire is a small, quiet town in New England, where everybody knows each other and grew up together. Nothing really bad has ever happened in Salem Falls, and there is no trouble. That is, until Jack St. Bride enters the town. I read the book Salem Falls, by Jodi Picoult. Jodi Picoult writes many young adult novels such as Nineteen Minutes and My Sister’s Keeper. In 2003, she won the New England Bookseller Award for Fiction. Although this book is not a part of a series, some o...more Salem Falls, New Hampshire is a small, quiet town in New England, where everybody knows each other and grew up together. Nothing really bad has ever happened in Salem Falls, and there is no trouble. That is, until Jack St. Bride enters the town. I read the book Salem Falls, by Jodi Picoult. Jodi Picoult writes many young adult novels such as Nineteen Minutes and My Sister’s Keeper. In 2003, she won the New England Bookseller Award for Fiction. Although this book is not a part of a series, some of the characters also reappear in other books by Jodi Picoult. Jordan McAfee, his son Thomas, and his wife Selena are also featured in The Pact and Nineteen Minutes. A minor character named Frankie Martine returns in the books Second Glance and Perfect Match. The audience of Salem Falls can range from young adults and up. In this book, a man named Jack St. Bride enters the town of Salem Falls and takes a job as a dishwasher at a local diner. The woman who runs the diner is Addie Peabody. Jack used to be a smart and educated man, who was a teacher at a schools boarding school. He was accused of having an affair with a student and although he was innocent, he went to jail for 8 months, and then came to Salem Falls because he had nobody else. Many people in Salem Falls are not happy about the fact that there is a sex offender living among them. You learn the stories of many people living in Salem Falls, such as Gillian Duncan and her friends, Thomas McAfee, Charlie Saxton, and many others. All of the characters’ stories combine when yet again, Jack St. Bride is wrongly accused of raping a girl. I thought that it was a decent book. I liked the plot, and most of the that I didn’t like about this book was that some parts were a little unrealistic and it was harder to connect with the book, because a few of the characters were “witches that practiced magic” and they were casting spells on people, so it was hard to take the book seriously if there was fantasy involved. The characters stories were very interesting and you wanted to read more to see what would happen next. Some of the individual’s stories were a bit confusing in the beginning because there were so many different characters and it was hard to keep track of what was going on and who was who. It was also a bit confusing, because the story kept on changing the time and setting. In the beginning of a new chapter it told you what year it was in, but it was still a little bit hard to keep track of whether the scene was in the present or thirty years ago. At the end of the book, I still had a few questions remaining about events that happened but were never later discussed in the book. Overall, I enjoyed the book. I would recommend it to anyone that is a young adult or older. It was an interesting and unique novel that was long, but a page turner. In the beginning, it may be hard to get hooked onto the book, but once you get into it, you won’t be able to stop reading until you get to the end. (less)

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Sep 27, 2011 Yessy Loren rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: family-fiction, mystery-detective

Ini dia nasib jelek yang musti ditanggung akibat terlalu tampan

Jack St.Bride harus mendekam di penjara atas tuduhan pelecehan kepada muridnya.Ia juga kehilangan pekerjaanya sebagai guru.Bahkan ibunya sendiri yang seorang aktivis wanita pun ikutan membencinya.Belum lagi sahabat dekat dan rekan kerjanya.Intinya seluruh kota menghujatnya. Buruknya adalah: Jack tidak bersalah!Tapi ia terpaksa mengaku bersalah demi keringanan hukuman,atas anjuran pengacaranya yang tidak becus.

Setelah lepas dari tahanan,Jack melangkah sembarangan,naik ke dalam taxi tanpa tujuan,hingga tiba di Salem Falls.Di sana ia merasa bisa memulai sesuatu yang baru dan damai.Apalagi setelah ia bertemu dengan Addie Peabody,wanita memikat yang membuatnya jatuh cinta.Tapi ketika suatu pagi,polisi mengetuk pintu rumah Addie,dan menggiring Jack atas tuduhan pemerkosaan,mimpi buruk itu terulang kembali...dan kini di kota kecil Salem Falls yang tenang itu mulai bergejolak.Rahasia demi rahasia mulai terkuak...

eheeem...

buat gw pribadi,tokoh utamanya kesian banget.Karena saking gantengnya,dia malah tersangkut banyak masalah.

Kasus pertama,karena murid bimbingannya dr klub sepak bola di sekolah tempat ia mengajar mulai kege-eran dan menulis sembarangan di diarynya.Trus tuh diary kedapatan baca sama bapak si cewek yang pendeta dengan kelakuan sok alim banget.

Akibatnya...dipenjara deh karena tuduhan palsu.

Kasus kedua.Terulang lagi..Jack ketemu lagi sama remaja cewek reseh yang sok cantik,padahal ia bermasalah dengan kepribadian.Butuh perhatian hingga taraf gak waras. Lawan Jack kali ini malah mempraktekan ilmu sihir hitam segala!Bayangin aja betapa sakit jiwanya ini cewek.Dia naksir berat ama Jack.Menurut gw sih cuman terlalu terobsesi krn sempat ditolak sama Jack,padahal belum ada orang yang berani menolak di sebelumnya.Dan sebagai balasannya...ia mengatakan bahwa Jack memperkosanya!

Yang kedua ini paling berat,karena Jack udah ketemu ama belahan jiwanya,si Addie.Ia ingin Addie percaya padanya..tapi Addie sendiri memiliki masa lalu yg kelam.Sulit untuk bisa percaya pada orang yang baru dia kenal beberapa bulan,meskipun ia juga mencintai orang itu...Tapi Addie gak melempem begitu aja.Ia bertekad mencari tahu dan kembali menelusuri masa lalu Jack demi mencari tahu kebenaran...Gimana jadinya nasib Jack kali ini??Ikutin aja bukunya

note: khas Jodi Picoult banget!Banyak adegan di pengadilannya juga nih yang melibatkan pengacara yang ganteng,berkarakter skaligus wanita tangguh pilihannya

(less)

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Sep 21, 2011 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: change

I read this book long before I was a feminist, and now that I look back on it, it was much more than just a book to read.

As a feminist, I believe that any and all rapists should be punished in some way or form. However, this book brings up a topic that is rarely brought up in courts: what if the "offender" didn't really do it? We get so caught up in the fact that a woman's (or man's) body was violated in such a grotesque manner that we rarely stop and think if the aggressor actually did it. Wha...more

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Sep 16, 2011 Cherie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

If I could give this book 10 stars, I would. This is the second book I've read by Picoult, and she is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. She is immensely talented, knows how to grab the reader from the first page and not let go until way past the last. She weaves her tales with such delicacy and intricacy you forget you're actually reading a fiction novel and not part of the small town where it takes place. I can think of several "authors" who should take a class from her on how to effect...more

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Jun 18, 2011 Britni rated it 4 of 5 stars

Salem Falls stuck to the typical Jodi Picoult writing style- part romance, part legal court drama, and part controversial topic - all wrapped up in a very real-life and intriguing story. Picoult typically deals with modern issues that are very real to all of us, and Salem Falls stuck to that same path.

In Salem Falls, a high school teacher is accused and convicted of sexual assault on one of his students even though he claims that he never did it. When he gets out of prison eight months later, he...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
last paragraph	13	145	Feb 24, 2013 06:21am
Salem Falls: Wicca	1	5	Feb 16, 2013 04:58pm
Unresolved Issues?	6	92	Oct 25, 2012 09:17am
Goodreads Librari...: Alternate Cover needed	2	25	May 18, 2012 09:35am
Potpourri Picks: Salem Falls Pages 71-142	2	7	Mar 31, 2012 10:56am
Potpourri Picks: Salem Falls Pages 1-70	5	12	Mar 16, 2012 03:49pm
Potpourri Picks: Thoughts Salem Falls	3	10	Mar 09, 2012 06:25am

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About Jodi Picoult

Picoult was born and raised in Nesconset on Long Island, New York. Her first story, at age 5 was "The Lobster Which Misunderstood." She studied writing at Princeton University, graduating in 1987, and had two short stories published by Seventeen magazine while still in college. Immediately after graduation, she took on a series of miscellaneous jobs, from editing at a textbook publishing company t...more

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Quotes from Salem Falls

“After a certain point, a heart with so many stress fractures can never be anything but broken.” — 755 people liked it

“You can't look back - you just have to put the past behind you, and find something better in your future.” — 597 people liked it

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