Cost

I know, two posts in one day. I finished the long, bad Against the Day a few days ago, and I finished the shorter, better Cost today.

Cost delves into a family that learns of and reacts to the heroin addiction of one character, Jack. We meet the family just before they learn of this addiction. The mother and father are divorced, and the father has remarried. Jack's maternal grandparents are on the scene, as are a maternal aunt and older brother. Most of the book happens during the course of a few days, although there is some follow-up that occurs later.

Robinson does a nice job of shifting among the perspectives of different family members. It's somewhat similar to that of Jodi Piccoult, although it's not dramatic and sustained in the same way. She seems to "check in" with each of the various characters without the dramatic shift. I enjoyed that style.

The story was very engaging, although I had to skip some of the explicit descriptions of shooting up. I'm way too squeamish for that stuff.

This book is a quick read without sacrificing psychological intensity.