The Body in Question

A Novel

By: Jill Ciment

Narrated by: Hillary Huber

*** NEW YORK TIMES 100 NOTABLE BOOKS OF THE YEAR ***

From the author of Heroic Measures (“Smart and funny and completely surprising . . . I loved every page” —Ann Patchett), Act of God (“A feat of literary magic”—Booklist) and, with Amy Hempel, The Hand That Feeds You (“An unnerving, elegant page-turner” —Vanity Fair), a spare, masterful novel.

The place: central Florida. The situation: a sensational murder trial, set in a courthouse more Soviet than Le Corbusier; a rich, white teenage girl—a twin—on trial for murdering her toddler brother.

Two of the jurors: Hannah, a married fifty-two-year-old former Rolling Stone and Interview Magazine photographer of rock stars and socialites (she began to photograph animals when she realized she saw people “as a species”), and Graham, a forty-one-year-old anatomy professor. Both are sequestered (she, juror C-2; he, F-17) along with the other jurors at the Econo Lodge off I-75. As the shocking and numbing details of the crime are revealed during a string of days and courtroom hours, and the nights play out in a series of court-financed meals at Outback Steak House (the state isn’t paying for their drinks) and Red Lobster, Hannah and Graham fall into a furtive affair, keeping their oath as jurors never to discuss the trial. During deliberations the lovers learn that they are on opposing sides of the case. Suddenly they look at one another through an altogether different lens, as things become more complicated . . .

After the verdict, Hannah returns home to her much older husband, but the case ignites once again and Hannah’s “one last dalliance before she is too old” takes on profoundly personal and moral consequences as The Body in Question moves to its affecting, powerful, and surprising conclusion.

Critic reviews

“A fantastic rendering of female desire . . . Few writers can tackle the bedroom—or female libido . . . but Ciment is a master: in exquisitely spare prose, she nails it.” —Penelope Green, The New York Times

“[The] deft orchestration of absurdity and existential dread distinguishes Ciment's style. That's why the situation of Ciment's latest novel, The Body in Question, is so perfectly suited to her powers as a novelist . . . incisive . . . a profound story about mortality and the mysteries of human behavior . . . smart and disturbing.” —Maureen Corrigan, NPR

“Engaging, empathetic . . . This honest, mature look at life and love adds to a growing body of evidence leading to a decisive verdict: Ciment is an author well worth reading.” —Kirkus (starred review)

“Stark and absorbing . . . scathingly funny . . . a smart, compact, refreshingly unsentimental exploration of the persistence of desire amid the fact of death.”
—Sam Sacks, The Wall Street Journal

“Excellent . . . short and brisk, propelled by the suspense of multiple questions . . . deft and gripping.”
—Curtis Sittenfeld, The New York Times

So good

Salacious, sinister, and sad; or as they’re more commonly known— “The Three S’s of Storytelling.”

Just kidding. About the Three S’s thing I mean. The rest is all true. What a great read.

Interesting characters.

Held my interest. Enjoyed the characters. Thought that the plot could be more involved. Overall, an enjoyable read.

A sophisticated and complex psychological study

A very solid 3.5. Don’t think of it as a thriller, despite the fact that it is a murder trial that serves as the center of the story. Rather, it’s a sophisticated psychological study of need, love, compulsion, and desire. Fun to think about where your sympathies should lie, what the titular "body in question" really is, and what -- about ourselves and others -- is truly knowable and forgivable. I can't add more without risking spoilers. Definitely a cut above.

Narrator Hillary Huber does a splendid job in bringing the story to life.

must read

This is perhaps my favorite book of all time, so we'll written, such a good pay off. I am a writer as well, literally no notes, a perfect book. Can't wait to relisten.

Pretty good, until the last hour or so

The ending!! I'm so mad. I hope there is a sequel coming, because otherwise, this may be the worst ending I've read in a long time.

As for the actual story- I like it, but I think if there is a sequel I would like to find out what really happened, because I don't agree with the majority on their decision regarding the verdict. I really think something else happened, and as a reader I would like to see that part of the story.