House rules

Jacob is a teen with Asperger's Syndrome (now known as an autism spectrum disorder, I believe. It's no longer a separate diagnosis.) Like many people with this disorder, he doesn't meet people's eyes in conversation and doesn't understand social cues. But his obsession is true crime, specifically forensic science. He watches reruns of the equivalent of Forensic Files every day, and often shows up at local crime scenes to try to “help” solve the case. But when a murder happens close to home, Jacob ends up as a suspect.

I believe this is meant to be a mystery but I'm not putting on my mystery shelf because it's not. It was extremely clear from the beginning what really happened, which made the 500 pages a little exhausting, just waiting for it to be “revealed.” But it is a story of family. As always, Jodi Picoult went above and beyond with her research. I may not always love the storyline, but I am ALWAYS impressed by the research she does. In this case, not only living with Asperger's, but also forensic science. It's so obvious that a ton of work and research went into this book, as usual with her books.

Something else I really loved was Jacob's brother Theo's point of view. This is written in alternating POVs, including Jacob, Theo, Jacob's mother Emma, his lawyer, Oliver, and a police detective. I enjoyed seeing the story from everyone's point of view, but especially Theo's. Theo was so realistic. He was resentful at times. He felt cheated out of his childhood and being the little brother. If you've ever taken care of a family member with a disability or even a debilitating disease, it's very relatable. I appreciated that it wasn't just rainbows and sunshine. The only thing that was a little annoying was how repetitive it was. I feel like the book could have been a couple hundred pages shorter had we not had to listen to Emma talking about his symptoms over and over and over. Like, we got it in the first hundred pages. But overall, I only discounted one star for this because I adored the realism of Theo and the research was over the top good.

Would I recommend?
Sure, why not?