The Pact by bestselling author Jodi Picoult. The book is a gripping courtroom drama and family story that explores themes of love, friendship, family, loss, and the limits of parental knowledge.
Synopsis
For eighteen years, the Hartes and the Golds have been inseparable neighbors and best friends, making it no surprise when their children, Chris and Emily, begin a romantic relationship. This seemingly perfect world shatters one November night when 17-year-old Emily is found dead from a gunshot wound in an apparent suicide pact with Chris.
The story unfolds by alternating between "Now" (the present-day murder trial of Chris Harte) and "Then" (flashbacks providing context to the events leading up to Emily's death), leaving the reader to piece together what truly happened. The local detective has doubts about the suicide pact, and the two devastated families find themselves on opposite sides of a courtroom battle, forced to question how well they ever truly knew their children.
Key Details
Author: Jodi Picoult
Original Publication Year: 1998
Genre: Fiction, Romance, Legal Thriller
Themes: Friendship, love, family dynamics, loss, suicide, and judicial proceedings
Adaptation: The novel was adapted into a Lifetime television movie in 2002.