Endings that leave you hanging, maybe a bit too much. *SPOILER ALERT*

I have always been full of questions, groping for information, especially while I'm reading. In fiction, I don't mind the ending leaving me hanging a tad, with a few questions. But at some times after I finish a book I just feel absolutely frustrated.

House Rules by Jodi Picoult is a story of Jacob, an 18 year old with Aspergers Syndrome being accused of murder. It is a truly gripping story that raises questions about how our legal system treats those whom have special needs. I've read four Jodi Picoult novels, and I either preferred the emotion over the plot, vice versa, or I am tied into both. In this case, I was gripped by the intriguing plot. I kept on reading to watch the process Jacob had to go through during the investigation, his brief time in jail, and the trial. One of the reasons why I was so interested in the story is because I'm writing a play about someone with a form of Aspergers syndrome, so I was interested in looking for some of that mentality in the story.

I don't want to get into a whole retell of the entire story, but basically, this is how it all went down. The original case against Jacob was this: Jacob Hunt, 18, went into a fit of rage after getting into an argument with his social skills tutor, Jess Oglivy. He supposedly choked her, causing her to hit her head on the floor and causing a concussion. He realized what he did, tampered with the crime scene to direct the evidence towards her boyfriend, and dragged her into the woods about 100 yards away from the crime scene.

Jacob's 15 year old brother named Theo has a habit of breaking into houses and taking things such as ipods, video games, etc. Jess Oglivy was house-sitting for a home Theo often broke into. He came in and saw Jess getting out of the shower. Jess saw him too, so surprised she fell and hit her head on the sink. Theo bolted out. Jacob came over for his regular appointment with Jess. He saw Theo's footprints and knew what had happened. In order to protect his brother, Jacob tampered with the crime scene to direct the evidence away from Theo.

A main theme in the story is that Jacob, because of his condition, believes the world revolves around him. He does not feel empathy, notice emotions in other people, nor knows how to express his own. In the last chapter, his lawyer and his mother unexpectedly find out what really happened and drive them back to the courthouse, where the jury has been trying to reach a verdict for a week. The last scene is Theo and Jacob sitting together in the car, listening to an ipod, at peace. Supposedly, the thought that Jacob was trying to protect his brother was some sort of a consolation, bringing comfort to their broken family.

This ending drove me absolutely crazy. The charges for tampering with a crime scene, especially as severely as Jacob did, could put him in prison for many, many years. And throughout the book, there have been examples of Jacob's mother believing that he was "looking out for" or "empathizing with" the people he loves, but she was always mistaken. I can very, very easily believe that this is one of those times. Maybe he didn't want his brother in prison because he knew his mother would be upset, and wouldn't stick to the routine he is so used to. And I don't understand why in the car they were so at peace. They were likely about to undergo a retrial after spending a week or so of deafening, intense, life altering time on the one that they did last week. You know, the one that the jury is about to reach the verdict to?

I've had issues with Jodi Picoult's endings before. I detested the ending to My Sisters Keeper. It was such an intriguing, emotion filled, almost perfect book, but the ending was a rushed, "I-am-so-tired-of-writing-this-story-and-this-is-the-quickest-way-to-end-it"ending. Drove me nuts.

I thought House Rules was alright. It had a very interesting plot and I enjoyed reading about the characters experiences. But yes, the ending was, to put it mildly, unsatisfying.