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Defending Jacob

William Landay (Goodreads Author)

3.98 · Rating details · 240,217 ratings · 19,443 reviews

Award-winning author William Landay has written the consummate novel of an embattled family in crisis - a suspenseful, character-driven mystery that is also a spellbinding tale of guilt, betrayal, and the terrifying speed at which our lives can spin out of control.

Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty ...more

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Hardcover, 421 pages

Published January 31st 2012 by Delacorte Press

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Apr 05, 2012 Lisa rated it it was ok

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jul 27, 2012 Jill rated it it was amazing

It has been YEARS since a book has had a twist that I didn't see coming. Well played William Landay, I would never have imagined the ending of this book. I will definitely have a "book hangover" from this one. I can't start a new book because I can't get this one out of my head!

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Mar 04, 2012 Jason rated it really liked it

Shelves: for-kindle, 2012, reviewed

I’ve always had a weakness for these mystery/crime thrillers—you know, the dragon tattoos and angels & demons of the world? I suppose I should be a little embarrassed by this but I’m not. They are my peanut butter and fluff.

Defending Jacob is some of the best fluff I’ve ever tasted. It is written by a former assistant district attorney from Massachusetts with a real knack for this type of storytelling—Jacob is perfectly paced with a tugging suspense that doesn’t abate until the final I’ve always had a weakness for these mystery/crime thrillers—you know, the dragon tattoos and angels & demons of the world? I suppose I should be a little embarrassed by this but I’m not. They are my peanut butter and fluff.

Defending Jacob is some of the best fluff I’ve ever tasted. It is written by a former assistant district attorney from Massachusetts with a real knack for this type of storytelling—Jacob is perfectly paced with a tugging suspense that doesn’t abate until the final sentence. And it’s rife with all this legal mumbo jumbo so sometimes you forget it’s just fluff (don’t worry, though, it will remind you). By the end, my adrenaline levels were so high I needed to borrow my Mom’s blood pressure pills.

If you don’t want spoilers, you should probably stop reading now because I can only avoid them for so long. The thing I love about this book is its delve into the personal. The assistant DA’s teenage son is implicated in the murder of his classmate and so even though this is at some level a legal drama, it is also a family drama. To switch roles from lead prosecutor to paternal protectorate is obviously necessary for the ADA, but it does nothing to curb the tide of repercussions for him, his family, and the case. I was also riveted by my own fluctuation between empathy for a boy unjustly dealing with a murder rap and revulsion for him as doubts of his innocence grew.

Also, this book has wicked cool courtroom scenes.

Although the novel’s “present” occurs mostly during the aftermath of the murder and the murder trial itself, the story is interwoven with witness testimony from a grand jury trial that occurs six months later…which must clearly be unrelated to the events of the current murder trial, right? This seemingly unrelated testimony adds to the suspense of the book and its relevance is not revealed until the final chapter. And if you want to know what that relevance is, it turns out to be this: (view spoiler). ...more

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Dec 28, 2011 switterbug (Betsey) rated it it was amazing

This is as much a nuanced family drama, love story, and social inquisition as it is a murder/courtroom/legal thriller. If you can get past a few contrived plot points (this is where readers will divide), and engage with the narrator, whose reliability or unreliability is a puzzle to piece together, you will be satisfied with this warm yet dark story of a community and family unhinged by a violent crime. The author is a former DA who is skilled at informing the reader about the law and procedure This is as much a nuanced family drama, love story, and social inquisition as it is a murder/courtroom/legal thriller. If you can get past a few contrived plot points (this is where readers will divide), and engage with the narrator, whose reliability or unreliability is a puzzle to piece together, you will be satisfied with this warm yet dark story of a community and family unhinged by a violent crime. The author is a former DA who is skilled at informing the reader about the law and procedure without telegraphing it. The narrative is even, polished, and intelligently observant of a community in shock, a family shattered.

I have relatives in Newton, Massachusetts, where this thriller takes place. It is an upscale community of educated professionals, whose children graduate from tony high schools and go on to Ivy League colleges. 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.

Jacob, the fourteen-year-old son of First District Attorney Andy Barber, is accused of murdering his classmate, Ben Rifkin. 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. ...more

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Feb 01, 2015 Matt rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemporary-fiction, mystery, legal

"The boy had been stabbed three times in the chest. 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...five foot ten or so, although the sloping ground in the park made this projection unreliable. The weapon had not been ...more

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Jan 14, 2013 Sandra rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, mystery

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.

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Sep 15, 2019 Em Lost In Books rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 3-star, stand-alone-read, 2010-19, 2019

this story has an open end, readers are free to draw their own conclusion about the murders and murderer but where this book really pulled me in was the court room drama and all that was said in favor of and against the murderer. Other than that I found it to be a mediocre read.

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May 14, 2012 Trudi rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime-mystery, audiobook, 2012, rusa-reads, in-the-courtroom, sherwood-picks

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
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 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? guilty?

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. For anyone who isn't sick of arguing the nature/nurture debate, Defending Jacob raises some interesting questions concerning the existence of a "murder gene" and whether violence can be passed down through the generations like eye color.

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. ...more

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May 01, 2016 Nilufer Ozmekik rated it really liked it

As soon as I got the great news that Apple TV will adapt this book into the limited TV series and cast America’s ass a.k.a Chris Evans as Andy Barber, It and Knives Out ‘s brilliant actor Jaeden Martell as Jacob and they plan to stream it at the mid April. I said: “Hell yeah!” we got the mind bending, twisty, surprising story we deserved. So I made a fast rereading to remember some intense parts and details of the book.

Andy Barber is experienced assistant district attorney of Newton, ...more

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Feb 18, 2017 Brenda -Traveling Sister rated it it was amazing

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 ...more

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May 07, 2012 Dem rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, recommended, 5-star, psychological-thrillers

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. ...more

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Mar 07, 2017 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 ...more

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Mar 15, 2013 Robert rated it really liked it

Shelves: robert-s-reads

I hated Jacob and would have preferred to rub his cocksure attitude into the sand, knock him over the head with a shovel, and then bury him with said object about six feet under. He’s more emotionless void than passionate Picasso, and he feels absolutely no responsibility for his actions. That’s your typical teenager, at least on the latter, but not having a heart is not exactly what I strive toward every day of my life. And yet I ended up completely immersed in legalese and legal suspense.

I hated Jacob and would have preferred to rub his cocksure attitude into the sand, knock him over the head with a shovel, and then bury him with said object about six feet under. He’s more emotionless void than passionate Picasso, and he feels absolutely no responsibility for his actions. That’s your typical teenager, at least on the latter, but not having a heart is not exactly what I strive toward every day of my life. And yet I ended up completely immersed in legalese and legal suspense.

William Landay has a knack for plotting novels, or at least based on the merits of DEFENDING JACOB. The spoon-fed trial details, the slipping between the present and the past almost effortlessly, the family history that comes out later like a pissed off reptile, and the emotional struggle to hold a family together even as it’s being torn apart all make for one glorious read. And yet he takes nearly 431 pages to answer one basic question: Is Jacob guilty or not? If you peel back all the emotional layers and struggles and doubts and accusations, that’s the bottom line. To put it mildly, he does it really, really well.

Andy Barber doesn’t want to answer this question. He doesn’t want to believe he could have made an error raising his son; instead, he chooses to focus on the goodness and righteousness that he sees every day in Jacob. He’ll do whatever it takes to defend his boy, even if it means lying or circumventing the truth or covering up details along the way. But then I’m the kind of person who thinks celebrities and other public figures should act in a professional, civic manner, and I hold myself to the same standards that I hold others to (often to be disappointed by said individuals somewhere along the way). None of that detracted from my overall reading experience, though. It just gave me a few additional thought molecules.

But I will say I didn’t like the ending. Even though it doesn’t change my rating, I would have been happier had the book ended about 30 pages sooner. Sure, it was an excellent twist, but it’s not one I was particularly happy about.

Cross-posted at Robert's Reads ...more

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Dec 31, 2012 La-Lionne rated it it was amazing

Shelves: not-for-the-weak-hearted, favorites, funny, brilliant-ending, emotional, own, heartbreaking, with-a-twist, unique-different, creepy

5 brilliant and heartbreaking stars :-(

This story isn't about proving Jacob is innocent or guilty. At least I didn't think so. For me this story was about fathers unconditional love for his son, no matter the outcome.
description

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 ...more

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Sep 24, 2017 James Thane rated it liked it

Shelves: crime-fiction

This legal/family thriller is strongly reminiscent of Presumed Innocent, the novel by Scott Turow that basically set the standard for every legal thriller that would follow.

In this case, the main protagonist is a long-time assistant D.A. named Andy Barber. He's second in command to a D.A. with higher political aspirations. The two are friends; Andy gets all the high profile cases because he's very good at what he does. Andy is married to the love of his life, Laurie, and they have a teenaged son This legal/family thriller is strongly reminiscent of Presumed Innocent, the novel by Scott Turow that basically set the standard for every legal thriller that would follow.

In this case, the main protagonist is a long-time assistant D.A. named Andy Barber. He's second in command to a D.A. with higher political aspirations. The two are friends; Andy gets all the high profile cases because he's very good at what he does. Andy is married to the love of his life, Laurie, and they have a teenaged son named Jacob.

When one of jacob's classmates is stabbed to death in a local park while on his way to school, the entire community is shocked. Andy immediately takes charge of the case, determined to see that the killer is severely punished once the police find him or her. But then, Andy is stunned when his own son becomes the principal suspect in the killing after classmates reveal that Jacob had a knife much like the one the police have described as the missing murder weapon.

Andy insists, of course, that Jacob is innocent. He simply knows this intuitively because he loves his son. But Jacob is indicted and eventually tried for the crime. Andy's boss distances herself; that friendship is ended, and the case is given over to the number two prosecutor behind Andy, an ambitious, insecure prosecutor who is determined to make his bones by successfully prosecuting the case against Andy's son. Inevitably, all of this takes a toll on Andy and Laura's marriage, and so this is also a portrait of a family in crisis.

I had fairly mixed emotions about this book. I did not like any of the characters, who all seemed flat and one-dimensional. None of them was very sympathetic, and I found that I frankly didn't care much whether Jacob was convicted or not. I also didn't care about what might happen to his parents' marriage. Where the book came alive for me, though, was in the courtroom scenes. These are very well done, and once the trial finally began, I couldn't put the book down.

(view spoiler)

So a mixed review for me. I really enjoyed parts of this book a lot, but others troubled me. An okay read, but not a great one. ...more

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Oct 13, 2019 Ahmad Sharabiani rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, crime-mystery, mystery, united-states, 21th-century

Defending Jacob, William Landay
For twenty years, Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney, in Newton, Massachusetts. He is investigating the murder of a 14-year-old boy, Ben Rifkin, who was a classmate of his son Jacob. Andy initially suspects Leonard Patz, a known local pedophile, but soon, he is approached by Ben’s friend who hints at animosity between Ben and Jacob. Andy searches Jacob’s room and discovers a knife that fit the description of the murder weapon. Unsettled, Andy Defending Jacob, William Landay
For twenty years, Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney, in Newton, Massachusetts. He is investigating the murder of a 14-year-old boy, Ben Rifkin, who was a classmate of his son Jacob. Andy initially suspects Leonard Patz, a known local pedophile, but soon, he is approached by Ben’s friend who hints at animosity between Ben and Jacob. Andy searches Jacob’s room and discovers a knife that fit the description of the murder weapon. Unsettled, Andy disposes of the knife. The next day, he is suddenly pulled off the case when a fingerprint found inside Ben’s sweater matches that of Jacob. 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. At the request of Jacob’s lawyer, Andy reluctantly meets with Billy. He seems to be indifferent to Jacob’s situation. ...

تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز چهاردهم ماه مارس سال 2019 میلادی
عنوان: دفاع از جیکوب؛ نویسنده: ويليام لندى؛‌ مترجم: شيرين محمدی؛ ویراستار: مریم قدیمی؛ تهران: کتاب کوله پشتی‏‫، 1397؛ در 495 ص؛ شابک: 9786004611282؛ عنوان روی جلد: دفاع از جیکوب: اگر فرزند شما متهم به قتل می‌شد چه می‌کردید؟ ‮‬‬موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده 21 م

در این داستان: «اَندی باربِر» بیست سال، دستیار دادستان منطقه بوده، او مردی محترم است. در کنار همسرش: «لوری»، و پسرش «جیک»، خوشبخت است. شهر محل زندگی‌ «اَندی»، با رویدادن یک جنایت، در بهت فرومی‌رود، در پارکی پوشیده از برگ‌های پاییزی، پسری به قتل می‌رسد، و از همه بدتر اینکه، مظنون، پسرِ خجالتی، عجیب، و مرموز «اندی» است. «اندی» باور دارد، که «جیکوب» بی‌گناه است. همه ی والدین چنین حسی به فرزندان خویش دارند. اما افزایش فشارها، شواهد لعنتی، تردید، رابطه ی خانوادگیِ در حال فروپاشی، اهانت همسایه‌ ها، محاکمه، همه ی این عوامل، پایه‌ های خانواده ی «اندی» را، تهدید می‌کنند. امتحانی نهایی برای والدین: تا کجا حاضر به حمایت از فرزندانتان هستید؟ نوعی امتحان عشق و ایمان است. امتحانی برای اینکه والدین بدانند چقدر فرزندانشان را می‌شناسند. این امتحان برای مردی با اراده‌ ای آهنین و رازی پنهان، حکم دشوارترین آزمون بی‌گناهی، یا گناهکاری در نوع خود است. ا. شربیانی ...more

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Feb 15, 2012 Sandie rated it it was ok

William Landay's DEFENDING JACOB has received a lot of hype from its publishers and has been compared to Scott Turows "Presumed Innocent". Personally, this tale of the fourteen year old son of an Assistant D.A. accused of murdering a classmate put me more in mind of the William March book THE BAD SEED.

Several of Landay's characters lack flesh on their bones and the actions of some are downright unbelievable. The Jacob character must be based upon the Sphinx (he is that inscrutable) or perhaps he William Landay's DEFENDING JACOB has received a lot of hype from its publishers and has been compared to Scott Turows "Presumed Innocent". Personally, this tale of the fourteen year old son of an Assistant D.A. accused of murdering a classmate put me more in mind of the William March book THE BAD SEED.

Several of Landay's characters lack flesh on their bones and the actions of some are downright unbelievable. The Jacob character must be based upon the Sphinx (he is that inscrutable) or perhaps he takes after his father Andy, who has managed to keep a secret from his wife for fourteen years. The wife,Laurie, seems to want to be the perfect mother and anything less than achieving this perfection means she is a failure and "to blame" for any of her sons problems. The actions of the victim as he was being murdered were implausible at best. Jacob's grandparents seem to be MIA(yet another item that was hard to believe). Then we have Andy's "friend" who is trying the case. His "go for the throat" tactics are not the actions of a friend and the political maneuvering in this sticky case is a stomach turning sight to behold. Of course, the story is being related by just one person whose outlook, we know, is skewed.

Those observations aside I will admit that this would be the type of selection that any book club group would jump on since it presents any number of avenues to explore and topics for discussion.....and perhaps that was the author's goal. Some of the questions that came to mind as I read were (1) What lengths would a parent go to in order to protect their child from a murder charge? (2) is there any scientific validity in "behavioural genetics" - - in other words are certain people born with a "murder gene" and therefore driven to commit certain crimes and therefore not truly responsible for their actions - - Nature versus nurture? (3) how biased is the media in reporting sensational stories and does their version shape public opinion ? (4) does placing a child in nursery school create children with RAD (reactive attachment disorder)? (5) What is the effect of social media on our society? While there was some food for thought presented, I am still less than enthusiastic about this book.

Final Analysis: The family secrets are over the top on the believability meter, for an intelligent man the father was obtuse when it came to his son, the courtroom drama is less than dramatic, the protagonists recounting of the case is about as exciting as reading a court transcript of a manufacturer being sued for soap that didn't get the laundry clean enough, and a majority of the characters are about a flat as the paper dolls I played with as a child. All I can say is, Mr. Landay definitely owes a big thank you to his publicist. ...more

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Dec 30, 2018 Erin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: december-2018, best-of-2018

4.5 Stars!

HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!!!

Imagine being a parent whose son is accused of a heinous crime.

You want to believe him...

But.....

Defending Jacob is about Assistant District Attorney Andy Barber whose son Jacob is arrested for the murder of his classmate. Andy believes in his son's innocence 100%. Even when evidence starts to come out that makes little Jakey look guilty as Fuck.

I'm not going to give anything away but I will say that despite guessing the ending pretty early on, it still hit me ...more

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Mar 20, 2017 Lindsay - Traveling Sister rated it really liked it

4 stars! This was a highly suspenseful legal thriller/family drama. I was completely caught off guard by that ending (I love when that happens!).

The story revolves around solving the murder of fourteen year old Ben Rifkin who was stabbed three times and left dead in a local park. I flip-flopped countless times on my feelings toward the fourteen year old defendant, Jacob. The author, William Landay, did a great job of stringing the reader along pondering Jacob's innocence. I found it very ...more

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Feb 04, 2012 Jeanette rated it really liked it

Shelves: lawyer-fiction, four-star-fiction, all-fiction, domestic-and-relationship-fiction

There's a stanza from a Wendell Berry poem called "The Way of Pain" that applies to both of the fathers in this story -- the one whose son was murdered, and the one whose son was accused of murder.

"And then I slept, and dreamed
the life of my only son
was required of me, and I
must bring him to the edge
of pain, not knowing why.
I woke, and yet that pain
was true. It brought his life
to the full in me. I bore him
suffering, with love like the sun,
too bright, unsparing, whole."

That fierce love, that ...more

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Mar 25, 2015 JaHy☝Hold the Fairy Dust rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommended to JaHy☝Hold the Fairy Dust by: Angel Gelique

Shelves: z-formation-worthy-all-time-favs, hurt-worse-than-getting-a-brazilian, scribd-it, 2015-favorites

***5 " Unwavering " Stars**

Have you ever tried to write a review but no matter how hard you tried , you just couldn't articulate your thoughts properly ? I feel your pain.

I've written and deleted this review more times than I care to admit. Can you say scatter brain? I apologize in advance for this condensed rambling mess. . . . which will tell you nothing about the book itself, is the best I could come up with :-(
Thankfully, there are numerous fantastic reviews on GR. PLEASE, PLEASE, ...more

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Oct 07, 2017 Erin rated it really liked it

Shelves: library-borrowed

Wowza! A gripping courtroom thriller that examines the lengths one husband and father will go to protect his family. Make no mistake the pace of the story is slow and the legal process is stretched out in an effort to keep us dangling for over 400 pages to reach a jaw dropping ending. "Defending Jacob" might have been written in 2012, but it has made its way to the top of my favorites list for 2017.

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Aug 23, 2012 Gary the Bookworm rated it liked it

Normally, when a book screams at me, I'm going to be a movie, someday! I let it go. In the case of Defending Jacob, I sullenly read on, primarily because it was this month's selection for my book club at the Adult Center (view spoiler).I would no sooner have shown up on Tuesday AM to face this band of retired teachers and librarians without having read the book, than I would have smoked pot before taking the SAT's.

So on I read, becoming increasingly annoyed as implausible ...more

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Sep 20, 2015 Lisa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: legal-fiction

Defending Jacob by William Landay is the most exciting unputdownable legal thriller i have read this year really enjoyed the storyline & the plot outstanding i finished it last night & i must say what a compelling ending i didn't see coming.

Andy Barbers job is to put killers behind bars but in a small town just outside of Boston where he lives is the kind of place parents go to bring up their children safely& violent crime is a rarity.

A boy from his son Jacob's school is found dead ...more

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Jan 14, 2013 Mary Beth *Traveling Sister* rated it really liked it

If you have been like me and have this on your Tbr like forever, I think you might want to read it. I don't know what took so long for me to read this. It was a big surprise. I loved this and its a really great book.

Its been awhile since I've read a good courtroom thriller and I will be reading more books by this author
It also has given me the urge to want to read more legal thrillers.

This book played very well on my emotions. It kept me in suspense, turning the pages till late at night.

Andy ...more

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Apr 06, 2012 Aoibhínn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ebooks, reviewed, contemporary, crime, thrillers, 2013

Set in a small town in Massachusetts, Defending Jacob tells the story of fourteen-year-old Jacob Barber, the son of a well-respected Assistant District Attorney, who is accused of murdering a boy in his year at school. Has Jacob been falsely accused or is he, in fact, guilty of murder?

Defending Jacob is a well-written, disturbing and gripping crime thriller with plenty of twists and turns throughout the novel to keep you interested. I really enjoyed this book. I was hooked from the very Set in a small town in Massachusetts, Defending Jacob tells the story of fourteen-year-old Jacob Barber, the son of a well-respected Assistant District Attorney, who is accused of murdering a boy in his year at school. Has Jacob been falsely accused or is he, in fact, guilty of murder?

Defending Jacob is a well-written, disturbing and gripping crime thriller with plenty of twists and turns throughout the novel to keep you interested. I really enjoyed this book. I was hooked from the very beginning to the end. The reader is kept guessing as to whether Jacob is innocent or guilty until the very end of the novel. Throughout the trial I kept changing my mind about whether Jacob was guilty or not. (view spoiler)

The story is told from Jacob's father, Andy's, point of view and he is completely convinced of his son's innocence, even when the evidence points towards his son. (view spoiler)

The novel raised quite a lot of questions – would you do the same in that situation to protect your child? And were Andy and Laurie right to do what they did? Read the book and decide for yourself...

I thought this was a great read so I’m giving it a well-deserved five stars! ...more

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Dec 01, 2015 Snotchocheez rated it it was ok

I should probably "plead the fifth" on this one, as so many of my friends enjoyed this legal....thriller? mystery? angsty hand-wringer? Defending Jacob didn't really work on any level for me, sad to say. William Landay's many years employed as a DA are evident here, as the courtroom scenes are competently written, but implausibilities abound (as does really awful dialogue, particularly amongst adults, curiously enough). The end result is (as one keen observer noted in a one-word dismissal:) I should probably "plead the fifth" on this one, as so many of my friends enjoyed this legal....thriller? mystery? angsty hand-wringer? Defending Jacob didn't really work on any level for me, sad to say. William Landay's many years employed as a DA are evident here, as the courtroom scenes are competently written, but implausibilities abound (as does really awful dialogue, particularly amongst adults, curiously enough). The end result is (as one keen observer noted in a one-word dismissal:) Shlocky.

With about as much subtlety as Nancy Grace (or most anything airing on HLN, really), Landay feeds on the fears of a suburban parent's worst nightmare: the murder of a child. Jacob Barber, a 14 year-old Newton, MA geeky, sullen 8th grader is the accused; his father, Andy, is the the county's ADA who can't possibly imagine his son could've killed a classmate (even though signals abound that he clearly was capable of it.) The awkward trial (with a man ordinarily tasked with putting people behind bars now having to fight to keep his son from being thrown behind bars) ensues. A few (transparent, if not vivid neon) red herrings are thrown into the procedings, ostensibly to keep the reader off-balance, wondering if Jacob really did it. As the trial progressed, though, I (thanks to the introduction of some sketchy pseudo-science via the topic of heredity of "the murder gene", and some laughably awful, stilted give-and-take between Jacob's parents) found myself not really caring a whit about Jacob's "plight". A few curve balls thrown toward the end (view spoiler) seemed painfully contrived, rather than shocking like Landay obviously intended.

I apologize to my friends (and there are many) who gave Defending Jacob 4 or 5 stars, but I just could not feel the love for this. Maybe the movie adaptation they're planning will prove to be one of those rare cases of the-movie-is-better-than-the-book. I, for one, am not exactly champing at the bit to find out, though. ...more

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Dec 27, 2012 Zoeytron rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

This legal thriller was more taut and riveting than any I have read in years. Arriving late to the party in reading this book, I am fortunate to have remained unaware of the ending, which was killer! The scene played out in the supermarket checkout line was sheer perfection - "quivering with hatred like a tuning fork". I could almost feel it, I swear. Excellent work, I recommend it without reservation.

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Jan 07, 2013 Ali rated it liked it

Shelves: fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I liked this book well enough. It was an engrossing read, one that I sped through because I just had to know what the truth was. I both hate and love Landay for sprinkling those little foreshadowing comments throughout the book. The "win" felt hollow and rightly so; it was obvious that the other shoe was about to drop. I just wasn't sure what form it would take.

For most of the book I fell for the trap and thought that Jacob would be wrongfully convicted and the real murderer, Patz, would walk ...more

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Feb 26, 2012 Elyse Walters rated it really liked it

I reading list doesn't usually include a heavy diet of courtroom murder thrillers-(and family drama) ---
but I'm not sure why not--I enjoyed this book!

It was a page turning read ---but -- I was not 'just reading' (page after page) ---I spent much time 'contemplating' the many twists and turns.

As the reader --I was left to my imagination often (the manner in which the author wrote this absorbing novel).

I was never clear who 'really' had the upper hand (who was ahead during the days of the ...more

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What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Legal mystery/thriller told from the POV of a dad and you think that his son is on trial for murder. His son murdered a classmate and a girlfriend. [s]	4	31	May 21, 2019 12:34PM
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About William Landay

William Landay

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William Landay is the author of the New York Times bestseller Defending Jacob. Previous novels include Mission Flats, winner of the Dagger Award for best debut crime novel, and The Strangler, which was an L.A. Times favorite crime novel and nominated for the Strand Magazine Critics Award as best crime novel of the year.

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