I have to admit that it is difficult to write review for this book without giving anything away. Without doubt, The Pact had gripped my attention from cover to cover but the fact that there are things that were stated with no clear explanations make me not thoroughly satisfied. After the tragedy that happened on that night in November, the life of the Golds and the Hartes were completely torn apart. The Golds was devastated with the fact that they have to live life without the presence of their beautiful, smart and artistic Emily; while it certainly wasn't easy for the Hartes to see their son was yanked away from the house on his birthday night, being put in prison for months and being tried for murder for the crime that he might not commit.This leaves the readers with quite a few questions to ponder: How could someone like Emily decides to end her own life when she actually had everything that everyone would like to have? What really happened that night - Was it really a double suicide gone awry or was it actually a murder? If it was a murder, how could Chris has a heart to put a bullet inside of his lover's head when he claimed that he loves her more than life itself?Picoult certainly has a way to persuade readers to choose side when the trial began, only to cause them to re-think - re-choose sides - and redo it all over again. She was a complete genius in the way she captures the atmosphere in the courtroom and in the prison, in the way she describes Chris's feelings towards Emily and the way she makes several twists in her story. I just wish that she tied the loose ends in The Pact more tightly and give me, Chris, the Golds and the Hartes the consolations that we all need. But perhaps, this is how the end was meant to be - as in real life, most emotional dilemmas are rarely solved neatly, plus there will always be questions that needed answers. There is no such thing as "perfect ending" as in the end, there is no one that actually wins.All in all, I could say that The Pact is not really a bad read. However, I won't recommend this book to person who looks for a solid ending, nor to those who think that there are enough dramas in real lives till it is unnecessary to let the same elements creep into their leisure time as well.
