November 11, 2011
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!