In the book when Diondra is strangling Debby to death Ben watches and allows it to happen. In the movie, he wasn't even in the room. This changes his character because Ben felt guilty for letting it happen, so that is why he felt the need to be in prison for all that time.
I've got a plan in motion, and God's laughing.
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I thought in the book, Ben was in the room, but just didn't stop her. He was a coward and allowed everything to just happen.
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That was my biggest annoyance as well. When I first read the book, the ending kind of spiraled into a state of being too ridiculous to seem real, but I appreciated that Ben truly was involved after they spent most of the book making you question his guilt. Him standing by as Diondra strangled the sister was unexpected and made sense as to why he would keep himself in jail for so long.
The movie undid all of that by having him leave the room.
In the book, Ben Diondra & Trey had snorted some coke, or some drug, and were doing things they wouldn't normally do, despite claims that drugs won't have that effect. I guess it depends.
And there was a part of the book that explained that Ben hated Michelle, really disliked her. In the drug induced state, maybe he didn't even mind that she was being killed. He wasn't thinking straight.
Gee Woodle, Space Kadoodle!
I am also surprise about that change.