Lisa Unger, New York Times bestselling author of Beautiful Lies and Darkness, My Old Friend, had amazing things to say about Defending Jacob the new novel from award-winning author William Landay. This searing new thriller is sure to be a breakout novel of 2012. Landay has penned an unforgettable story of a murder that tears a family apart, and a trial that reveals how little one man knows about his son, and himself.
Unger’s praise for the novel:
“I have to say—and I don’t say this lightly—that it was truly great. All writers are first and foremost readers. We all want to be seduced and enrapt by story. But it’s a sad casualty of the writing life that we are less willing or able to be entranced by someone else’s novel, so involved are we with our own. Naturally, I was drawn to the major themes of family history, the corrosive nature of secrets, the parent-child dance, all things I explore in my own work. But more than that — William’s book is so well-written, every character so movingly and convincingly drawn, the plot so utterly enthralling, that I was completely swept away. Kudos to him. He should be really proud of this work. Defending Jacob is absolutely stellar, first-rate fiction—human, sensitive, and gripping in the extreme.”
For more info on Defending Jacob, I invite you to click here.
I was privileged to review this book for Library Journal. I’ve read Mr. Landay’s other books and enjoyed them, but I think he has moved to a new level with Defending Jacob. I loved it, and hope it is the breakout success it deserves to be.
I have not read any of the previous titles by Mr. Landay, but I’m very excited for DEFENDING JACOB to be shared with patrons and reader’s everwhere. It was both gut-wreching and eye-opening and I was literally on edge until the very end. I think lots of parents struggle with how much freedom to allow children online and I found myself asking the exact same questions as Andy Barber throughout the book. One of the first must-have library titles in 2012!