The Jury, by Fern Michaels
I picked this one up out of a Little Library; three CD audiobooks all in one package. I figured I would give it a listen. I had heard of the author Fern Michaels but don’t know anything about her. I was expecting some sort of feel good friendship novel; boy was I wrong.
The premise here is a group of women who take turns choosing who they want to get revenge on. For whatever wrong of the past they choose, they can mete out a punishment to fit the crime. Every quarter the women meet and decide who will be the target of their wrath. Then then plan and carry out the revenge as a group. It could be a drunk driver who killed a family member, someone who abused animals, or a spousal abuser. The revenge is no holds barred…
I found this novel rather disturbing; the eye for an eye kind of justice that isn’t part of our mainstream culture. The women were good at what they do too, which was a little unbelievable as they seemed to be socialites and soccer moms and I’m not sure where they’d pick up the ‘beat someone within an inch of their life but not leave identifiable evidence’ type of skills. I supposed it is entertaining to think that someone that evil just may get what they deserve, but I think karma doesn’t really work that way in real life.
The writing style was choppy and there were too many plot lines in a very short novel. Michaels would have done better to keep it more focused. Not having read any of her other books, I’m not sure if that is typical of her writing style. Michaels is an author who really cranks out the books, and it shows… At any rate, it was a quick ‘read’ at only three discs, and it was a freebie, but I wouldn’t pay for any of Fern Michaels’ books.
2 stars.
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