The Execution of Noa P. Singleton (1.5)

THE EXECUTION OF NOA P. SINGLETON by Elizabeth L. Silver

Here I am back from a week in Florida and I have a new book review for you! Disney & Universal were wonderful and our hotel was gorgeous. Almost hard to come home.

RATING SYSTEM

1 – I did not like the book at all.

2 – It was decent, but I would not recommend it.
3 – It was an enjoyable read. Recommendation could go either way.
4 – It was a very good book. I would recommend it.
5 – It was an excellent book! Must read!
6 – I will buy this book for my personal collection. Must read.

BOOK RATING

I give this book a 1.5.

“THE EXECUTION OF…” SYNOPSIS

Noa P. Singleton is a 30-something year old woman on death row for the murder of a pregnant woman (and obviously, her baby). The girl is 20-something year old Sarah who also happens to be dating Noa’s long lost (deadbeat), but newly found father. Noa does not contest her part in the murder and, after ten years in jail, has come to terms with her inevitable execution in just a few short weeks.

Suddenly the murdered woman’s mother and a young lawyer, Oliver, come into the picture and start fighting for a change of punishment. Supposedly the girl’s mother no longer believes in the death penalty and the lawyer secretly believes Noa is innocent of her crime and trying to cover up for someone else.

Throughout the course of the book we replay, in bits and pieces, the story of what actually happened that fateful night. Did Noa really murder Sarah? Is she covering up for someone else? Will she get her sentence changed to life in prison or perhaps be freed entirely? Or maybe she really did do it…

STATS

Pages:                         310

Published Year:        2013        
Personal Rating:       1.5 (of 6)
Type:                           Library Book, Hardcover

Genre:                         Murder Mystery, Fiction

THOUGHTS

I did not really like this book at all and the only reason I’m giving it a 1.5 is because it wasn’t awful enough that I couldn’t bear to continue turning the pages.

I kept thinking there was this really amazing twist right around the bend and, if I could only wait for it, the whole book would pay off. No such luck.

It’s not that it’s a terrible book really – the writing is fine; it’s just that the book seems to go nowhere and since Noa never contests the fact that she murdered Sarah (whether or not she did) it left me uninterested. I wasn’t “dying to figure out what happened” because she admits throughout the whole book that she murdered her. She came off as unremorseful and unwilling to help her situation so I didn’t really care about her.

The book never really catches you and because the author never really hints at where she is going, you don’t know what to look for. Am I supposed to be looking for whom Noa is protecting? Is there even a possibility she didn’t do it? I couldn’t really see the point of the book until the very end.

The conclusion is fine and it explains all the clues leading up to it, but it’s not a crazy shocker. It’s more of an, “Oh, so that’s what happened.”

This book wasn’t terrible, but I wouldn’t really recommend it. I’d rather just tell you what happens and save you a few days of your life.

NOTES ABOUT RATING SYSTEM

David does not like the “something-point-five” system because he feels like if you have a system from one to six, you should stick with solid numbers. I can see what he is getting at, but I feel that things aren’t always that cut and dry. I feel that I can be more accurate for you if I am able to add a half because sometimes, like this time, I can say I did not like the book (#1), but it wasn’t a terrible read (#2), so… “one-point-five” would be most accurate. I hope this system gives you as clear a rating as possible.

PERSONAL

I now have three weeks in which to pack, find a new apartment and move, while at the same time completing two reading-heavy course loads of homework for my online summer classes (due by Aug 20^th) which I have yet to begin. That being said, I’m screwed and I may not have a ton of time to read in the next month, but I will try to get back to you as soon as possible. After all, I don’t think I can really start lugging giant textbooks around on the subway.