‘The Lovely Bones’ is narrated by Susie Salmon, brutally murdered at the age of 14. From her heaven she watches all the people she has left behind, unable to accept her death and move on.

The story follows the lives of those left behind after her death. Unable to cope with the death of their daughter, the parent’s marriage slowly disintegrates. The mother abandons her family in an attempt to start a new life, while the father is determined to catch the man he knows to be his daughter’s killer. Susie’s young brother struggles to come to terms with the absence of his sister, and later his mother, while her sister grows up in the shadow of her death to ultimately live a fulfilling life. While the focus is on Susie’s family, there are several other characters in the story.

Not the kind of book I would usually read, I found this book to be unique and compelling. A powerful emotional drama, it keeps you hooked to the end, and you care about what happens to these characters. An impressive debut novel.

This book is very emotional at times, at at times almost moved me to tears.

I didn't particularly like the character of the mother!

Author of the memoir 'Lucky', this is Alice Sebold's debut novel.

This is a powerful and emotional read.

The opening chapter graphically describes the rape and murder of the main character, which may be off-putting to some readers.

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Created May 15, 2007 at 2:56pm • Submit your own review...