Still Life: A Novel [Mass Market Paperback]

Joy Fielding (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 26, 2010

Beautiful, happily married, surrounded by loving friends, and the owner of a successful interior design business, Casey Marshall couldn’t be more content with her life. Until a car slams into her at almost fifty miles an hour, breaking nearly every bone in her body, and plunging her into a coma that leaves her conscious but unable to move or communicate. Lying in her hospital bed, observing and listening to visitors, who assume she is oblivious to what they are saying, she quickly discovers that her friends aren’t necessarily the people she thought them to be—and that her accident might not have been an accident at all. As she struggles to break free from her living death, she begins to wonder if what lies ahead could be even worse.

“It is Fielding’s ability to get under the skin of her characters—and her readers—that has made her such a dependably bestselling author,” says the Calgary Herald . Smart, suspenseful, and overwhelmingly addictive, Still Life is a novel her fans won’t soon forget.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Casey Marshall has it all: a successful interior-design business; a handsome, loving husband; wonderful friends; and a boatload of family money at her disposal. But just as she’s contemplating starting a family, she’s the victim of a hit-and-run accident that leaves her in a coma. But she’s not completely out of it, so she’s a witness to everything that happens in her hospital room. But is that so bad? Isn’t it everyone’s dream to be a fly on the wall, to hear what might be said at our funerals? Even though Casey is privy to everyone’s “private” remarks and conversations as they visit, she feels trapped and helpless, especially when it becomes abundantly clear that the incident with the car was no accident. Her frustration mounts as her sister, the wayward but bighearted Drew, becomes a suspect, along with everyone close to her. While not narrated in first person, the action revolves around Casey’s experiences and perceptions. Fielding makes the most of this intriguing premise without succumbing to gimmicky plot tricks. The moment that Casey solves her own attempted murder is truly riveting, and the anxiety she feels as she tries to avoid the would-be murderer’s completion of his task is palpable. A heart-pounding mainstream thriller. --Mary Frances Wilkens --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“Fielding is a master of anticipation and knows how to create a labyrinth of tension, never providing an exit until the very last page.” — The Globe and Mail --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books; Reprint edition (January 26, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416585281
• ISBN-13: 978-1416585282
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (95 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #155,181 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joy Fielding is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Still Life, Charley's Web, Heartstopper, See Jane Run, and other acclaimed novels. She divides her time between Toronto and Palm Beach, Florida.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Suspense Suspense Suspense!, March 5, 2009

By 

W. Smith "4everSLAUGHTERED" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Still Life: A Novel (Hardcover)

Ever wanted to be a fly on the wall? Unfortunately for wealthy, beautiful and happily married Casey Marshall she has become that proverbial fly. After being hit by a van at 50 mph and breaking nearly every bone in her body she is left in a coma. The police suspect foul play and since this is Joy Fielding of course there's foul play. Casey cannot move her body and cannot open her eyes. Imagine how terrifying that must be. Trapped! But Casey can hear. She can hear everything. Her two best friends, her troubled younger sister, and her adoring husband come in and out of her hospital room for months. Conversations, arguments and confessions are open for Casey's ears. Between visits, Casey spends her time remembering childhood moments with her dysfunctional family and many nannies, as well as, how she met her best friends and her husband. The stories are both touching and sad. As Casey struggles to open her eyes and make contact with the world the attempted killer becomes clear to the reader. I was shocked by the revelation. The suspense in this book is sometimes too much. I was literally on the edge of my seat. I wanted to scream "Wake up now!" The ending was a little disappointing. I wanted more of a confrontation between the attempted killer and victim. Overall, loved it! Great suspense.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Predictable and uninspired ..., April 13, 2009

By 

Denise Crawford "DC" (Missouri, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Still Life: A Novel (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

Here is yet another Fielding novel, after Charley's Web: A Novel that has not lived up to my expectations. I've been quite disappointed in the past several books by an author whose novels I used to automatically purchase. One of the publisher reviews called Still Life "a heart-pounding mainstream thriller"" - I'm not sure what book with that title the person was referring to, but it wasn't this one.

In still another tired "damsel in distress" tale, this one features Casey Marshall (typical stunning rich talented young woman of contemporary romance fiction with a wealthy, handsome lawyer husband) who has the misfortune of being the victim of a hit and run accident. Premise: was it really an accident or was it attempted murder?

The story really never gets much out of the starting gate. During most of the book, Casey lies in a bed in the hospital or at her home - completely motionless and without any ability to see or interact with the characters that gather and talk around her bed. (As a nurse I've often been told that persons in coma can hear and that they could possibly understand what is happening around them although there is a lot of speculation as to whether or not that is true since the only cases that provide evidence are the ones where the person eventually wakes up and then can related their personal experience and tell whether or not they were aware during their coma state.) Regardless of the medical accuracy, I just made myself suspend any disbelief at the description of Casey's injuries and just read the book discounting the science.

The accident occurs early in the novel and then we meander through some back-story of Casey's childhood (which incidentally has nothing whatsoever to do with the development of the characters or furthering the plot) and learn about her absent, alcoholic mother and philandering playboy father. It was as if the author was adding some fluff to an old tried and true formula of the "accident disguised as attempted murder" and/or "dastardly acquaintance after the money" plot lines. We learn who arranged this "accident" very early in the book and then we figure out that the rest of the book is going to be predictable and that it's going to end just as we suspect it will. I hope it's not a spoiler to say that everything turns out exactly as guessed before reading page two.

All in all it was an OK read. If you must read it, borrow, don't buy.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Thriller that Kept Me Up till Midnight-Thirty, April 20, 2009

By 

Maggie Mae (Reno, Nevada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Still Life: A Novel (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

I started this book on a lazy Saturday morning and read the day away and late into the night, finishing around midnight-thirty. And then I lay awake, looking at the dark ceiling, trying to imagine what it would be like to be in a coma and being able to hear everything that's going on around you, but not being able to do anything about it. You'd feel so vulnerable. And that's what happens to Casey Marshal. She's in an accident and winds up like that.

However, while listening to everything that's going on around her she finds out that someone had tried to kill her, but she doesn't know who. Could it have been her sister Drew, who resents Casey for controlling her inheritance? Could it have been her friend Janine, who seems to resent Casey for pulling out of their business partnership and forming her own very successful company? Or could it have been her loving husband who cheats at golf? Could that be the only cheating he's been doing? Does he want her money?

There are plenty of good suspects here and I was guessing, changing my mind, then guessing again throughout the book. This is a terrific mystery thriller, one I couldn't put down, one I think will keep you up burning the midnight oil.