text: At first, I found this book to be difficult to digest because it appeared to be heading in a direction that was in sacrilegious conflict with my beliefs as a Christian and a catechist in the Catholic Church. Yet a part of me was also highly fascinated and captivated by the story, especially since I work as a mental health professional. As I keep reading, I discovered that it wasn't sacrilegious at all but rather a story of general faith and hope, of the extent a mother would go through to protect her child, and of the intrusive nature of the media. I particularly liked the strength Mariah showed during this conflict, despite her past history of nervous breakdown. And I like the way the character of Ian evolved from a sleazy teleaetheist to a caring and more moral man. The secondary characters were all wonderful, in particular Mariah's mother and the lawyers on both side. I thought the trial was once of the most interesting parts of the story. 
  
  As with all Picoult books, this was a deep and heavy novel which wasn't easily breezed through, but it was definitely a compelling and awesome book to read! 
  