Mystic River – Dennis Lehane, 2001 ★★

SPOILER WARNING: People Get Hurt

One big taboo when writing reviews is the spoiler. A reliable rule of thumb is to avoid it whenever possible. In most cases, avoidance is no big deal. But what if a “no spoiler” rule blocks you from discussing 75-80 percent of the work in question? Can you sensibly raise questions about an ending when even discussing the underlying framework of that ending risks telling the reader more than they want to or should know?