A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult

The warm fall day starts like any other at the Center—a women’s reproductive health services clinic—its staff offering care to anyone who passes through its doors. Then, in late morning, a desperate and distraught gunman bursts in and opens fire, taking all inside hostage.

After rushing to the scene, Hugh McElroy, a police hostage negotiator, sets up a perimeter and begins making a plan to communicate with the gunman. As his phone vibrates with incoming text messages he glances at it and, to his horror, finds out that his fifteen-year-old daughter, Wren, is inside the clinic.

But Wren is not alone. She will share the next and tensest few hours of her young life with a cast of unforgettable characters: A nurse who calms her own panic in order save the life of a wounded woman. A doctor who does his work not in spite of his faith but because of it, and who will find that faith tested as never before. A pro-life protester disguised as a patient, who now stands in the cross hairs of the same rage she herself has felt. A young woman who has come to terminate her pregnancy. And the disturbed individual himself, vowing to be heard.

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It’s been a while since I’ve read a Jodi Picoult novel. I’m so glad I picked up A Spark of Light! Not as good as my favourite, My Sister’s Keeper, but a great story from start to finish!

What’s different about A Spark of Light, is that it tells the story from the end to the beginning. Right away, the reader knows who is survives and who dies from a shooter coming into a women’s center. I liked this change for the most part and it was really well done. I didn’t love the last few chapters (the before and beginning of the shooting) because I had felt that we had already learned what happened before and why each person was at the clinic. It had felt redundant. I did love the connection at the end and was completely surprised! It was very well done.

I enjoyed all of the characters and you could really sympathise with all of them even though they had different views and opinions. I think Picoult did a great job showing all sides and views of abortion. It makes you feel and look into own opinions of the topic.

4 calculators out of a potential 5. Read it and I need to read more Jodi Picoult! Recommendations are welcome!

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