I saw the ads for this movie and decided I wanted to read the book first. This is a good practice, in my opinion: having read My Sister’s Keeper (Jodi Picoult, who I do not enjoy and will not read again after the atrocity that was Handle With Care), I know that I don’t want to watch the movie; having read The Lovely Bones, I know that I do want to see the movie.

This book is unusual. It’s not a mystery; we know whodunnit from the start. It’s not really a coming of age story; the narrator is dead. So I’ve put it as ChickLit Suspense. Feel free to tell me I’m wrong; I’m open to suggestions for genre here.

For me, the suspense was in wanting to see what happened next with Susie’s family and friends… and in really hoping desperately that the murderer got what he deserved.

I think this book is beautifully written, and it is a lovely story about the aftermath of violent death – how those left behind manage, how they deal with their emotions, and how they change over the days, weeks, months, years that follow.