Wish You Were Here is a story of 29 year old Diana who has her life planned out and is soon to go on holiday to Galapagos where her boyfriend Finn is going to propose to her. Unfortunately the pandemic hits and Finn, being a doctor, is needed more than ever at the hospital. Devastated Diana flies to Galapagos on her own only to find out that the hotel she's booked has closed down and the whole island has gone into lockdown with no more flights in or out. Diana is stranded and has no choice but to adapt to her new environment. In the second half of the book Diana returns to her normal life and starts questioning the plans for her future.

I must say this book didn't feel like Jodi Picoult when reading the first half which was giving me a romance vibe (luckily I was wrong about that). I personally found the second part of the book more interesting but oh my, it is Covid heavy!

When I first learnt Jodi Picoult wrote a book about the pandemic I was very happy that there's finally an author who is not ignoring the thing that's been screwing our lives for the last 18 months and is not afraid to incorporate it in the book. I really thought I wanted to read books with Covid in them but after reading this one, I realised that I'm not ready for that yet.

Such an interesting idea. Do you the author's comments at the end as she says so much that is truth and worth reading.
This is effectively a book in 2 halves. Each believable in themselves as the pandemic wends its way through the lives of the characters. This is one of several novels that have recently been released that reflect the pandemic and its impact on different lives and liifestyles.
And death. This is inevitable in such a novel and how we react to the deaths and then the lack of funerals. And the end of life celebrations. There is a lack of closure.
And of course, we must reflect on the impact for the medical staff of working on patients who die despite everything. And keep on dying. PTSD indeed.
So messages for us in here to think about.

I've read and devoured almost every book Jodi has ever written, and loved them. I loved this one as well, but, in a different way. It was beautifully written, capturing the enormity of the early pandemic days, the uncertainty, the nightmare that was unfolding. There is a twist and I didn't see it coming at all. The book felt like two halves for me, and I'm not sure which one I preferred. If I'm honest I prefer the old courtroom/dilemma stories that Jodi is so good at. This didn't disappoint, but felt quite different to her usual style for me.

Simply love Jodi picoult novels and this one was outstanding. Everything about this book is captivating. This novel is impossible to put down. I downloaded the arc this morning, and by this afternoon, I had finished. The rollercoaster was intense, the twists and turns unexpected, and the element of surprise insane. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton.
Publication Date: 25/11/21

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

No spoilers

I hadn’t realised until I started it that this book was set at the beginning of the covid pandemic in America. I’m so glad I did not let that put me off.

It’s about so much more than a pandemic. It’s about life changing moments and decisions. I absolutely loved it. I found it engrossing, informative, ultimately uplifting and truly empathetic. There are some really beautiful moments and a twist at the halfway point which I really did not anticipate
I thought about this book for a long time after I finished it. Oh. And now I want to go to the Galápagos Islands

Cannot recommend it enough.

I’d like to thank the author, publisher and netgalley for providing me with this advance digital copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

This is one of the best Jodi Picoult books of recent times. I was a bit wary about setting a book during Covid and at times it was very close to the bone and will be a hard read for people who suffered hospitalisations or losses of loved ones but it's done in a very real way and acknowledges the times we're in. It was also the ideal set-up for someone to be genuinely stranded abroad. I have to say, my favourite parts were the ones set in Galapagos. The story of the people Diana meets were captivating and I really felt very invested in them. Every character is drawn so well and their stories all feel very real. The "twist" was fascinating and I think the book really led to a conclusion that felt right. I was thoroughly engrossed and thrilled to have this chance to read it early. It was also a bit of escapism, reading about a quiet island and its beauty. It felt the closest to travelling in quite a while!

Are we where we should be? ★★☆☆☆

When Diana gets stranded on La Isabela, a tiny Ecuadorian island in the Galápagos, she is frightened and isolated as the pandemic rages back home in New York.

Parted from her job and her boyfriend, surgeon Finn, Diana begins to question everything about her seemingly perfect life: her career, her partner and her relationship with her estranged mother.

As she makes deep and meaningful connections on the island, Diana asks herself whether this is where she is meant to be after all….

The second half of the novel makes us question everything we have read so far and feels disparate. These are two separate stories: one of self-exploration on an isolated island and one of the terrible effects of Covid in New York and what it means to survive the illness.

A novel for those ready to hear more about the experiences of the Covid ICU and for readers who are able to navigate the major sea changes in the novel as both Diana and the author ask what consciousness and reality really means.

What a amazing read.

This was a very real but good read.

Thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish and could not get enough of.

This is a must read for anyone who enjoys a good book!!
Absolutely loved the characters, the plot, the tension -  impossible to put it down.
Certainly recommended!

I will start this review with a disclaimer or two.

1) I used to love Jodi Picoult, back in the courtroom drama days of writing. I would speed read a new novel in a day and emerge gasping for breath to reread again. It’s probably been 10 years since I did this - despite still reading, I just don’t enjoy her novels in the same way. Each one just seems to be an info dump of research rather than story and it’s been a real shame for me.

2) I have read so many novels on Netgalley recently where COVID has played a part and I have reviewed them disparagingly because they will date, they don’t capture it, and COVID has only been mentioned because it can be - somethjng “original”.

This novel, however, is beyond special.

An absolute return to form for Picoult - from the moment I picked it up I couldn’t put it down. The way she captures the sheer horror of the early COVID days will, for some, be too close to stomach right now - it’s painfully resonating and beautifully written. And the twist is as good as any she has ever written, if not better.

The most telling thing is that I looked down at my percentage on my kindle, saw I was 93% through and felt real anguish - I didn’t want to leave the story and the characters behind.

An absolute beautiful triumph.

Of all the books I have read this year, I cannot think of any that will resonate so deeply with a global audience as this one. Jodi Picoult carries out an impressive level of research for her oh so human look at the pain, losses, lockdown, heartbreak, grief, loneliness and isolation experienced by people as the horrifying nightmare of Covid-19 took hold and shut down so much of the world. I can understand if this is too soon for many readers to read about, but I found this to be an absolutely riveting read, highlighting the incredibly courageous work of the frontline medical staff, whilst providing an insightful glimpse into the beauty and nature of the Galapagos Islands, its people, history and culture.

In New York, the ambitious Diana O'Toole is almost thirty, and on the verge of achieving all that she wants professionally as an art specialist at Sotheby's, and personally, convinced that Finn Colson, a surgical resident at the Presbyterian hospital will propose on a trip to Galapagos to celebrate her 30th birthday. However, her carefully planned life is about to shot into tiny pieces when Finn is unable to go with her as a medical emergency develops with the beginnings of the Covid-19 virus. Diana arrives on Galapagos as it is going into quarantine and lockdown, leaving her stranded, her luggage is lost, she cannot speak the language, and communications are patchy. She is isolated and lonely, but finds herself connecting with a local family. Like so many people, Diana is to find herself re-evaluating her sense of identity and working out what really matters in life.

There is a humdinger of a ingenious twist that Picoult weaves into the narrative that I cannot reveal as it will be entering into spoiler territory. This is one of the author's best works, it is multi-layered, the characters are stellar and feel so authentic, and whilst it does not make for easy reading, I found myself turning the pages as fast as I could. Ultimately, this is a emotionally poignant, thought provoking novel, of what it is to be human, and the love, resilence, bravery and hope in the face of a global pandemic that broke so many lives. I think so many readers will love and appreciate this book. Highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

Wish You Were Here, Jodi Picoult

Fresh off the mark into pandemic stories Jodi Picoult arrives with Wish You Were Here. Her Pandemic fiction offering. As Covid19 reaches the shores of America art appraiser Diana and Surgeon boyfriend Finn are about to embark on holiday to the Galapagos islands. Finn however concerned about the virus decides to stay home and help on the home front encouraging Diana to go. However within 48 hours cases increase, America is locked down, Finn is flooded with cases and Diana is stranded on the island, with months apart Diana discovers a new way of life and a new side to herself.

Pandemic fiction is a fresh category and one i’m still unsure of. We are still living this reality and so i’m unsure if i’m quite ready to read it yet.
Wish You Were Here is going to be a divisive novel, Diana is a strong, firm protagonist. I enjoyed her journey of self discovery. I found Finn to be a believable character also and his difficult storyline and clear PTSD was incredibly true to the time.
The midpoint turn of this story however is a real love it or hate it moment, for me, i’m not sure. Though i understood it was needed for the forward motion of the story it was still a really polarising moment for me.
I preferred this novel to The Book of Two Ways, Picoults last offering but I do miss the format of story and court case of old!
Overall her development of characters remains as strong as it has ever been and her writing itself is as brilliant as ever.

For the first part of the book, I thought it was going to go the way of most predictable romances, so the twist was really good and unexpected and definitely upped my enjoyment of the story. As I read, I thought it would have been better if the twist was earlier in the story, but thinking about it afterwards, I think it was clever to keep the reader engrossed in getting to know more about the Galapagos Islands before the story switched. After I finished reading, I spent a long while making links between the first and second parts of the story and thought it was cleverly done.
Not my favourite Jodi Piccoult book, but definitely not the worst either.

Diana O'Toole's life is going perfectly to plan. At twenty-nine, she's up for promotion to her dream job as an art specialist at Sotheby's and she's about to fly to the Galapagos where she's convinced her surgeon boyfriend, Finn, is going to propose. But then the virus hits New York City and Finn breaks the news: the hospital needs him, he has to stay. But you should still go, he insists. And reluctantly, she agrees. Once she's in the Galapagos, the world shuts down around her, leaving Diana stranded - albeit in paradise. Completely isolated, with only intermittent news from the outside world, Diana finds herself examining everything that has brought her to this point and wondering if there's a better way to live. But not everything is as it seems.

Wow, I am not sure I have the words to this incredible read justice but I will try. I will admit I was apprehensive to read a book set around covid, I was unsure whether I would find it enjoyable or if it would be an all too real reminder. Well, I need not have feared, Picoult pulls it out the book and then some. This is just the most incredible read and has absolutely everything one expects from Picoult; emotion, beauty, pain, love, dilemmas, and in this book more than others, realism. I found myself completely immersed in the world of Diana and Finn and it was a world I did not want to return from. Their story is stunning and incredibly heartfelt, I felt everything they did and it made this a very special read. Picoult even manages to throw in a couple of twists which was very unexpected!

Picoult has captured Diana and Finn incredibly well, they felt like real people and their story touched me in so many ways. They go on a real journey during the course of this book and I went with them and I will not be forgetting that for a long time. With all of Picoult's books, it is the small details that really set them apart from others. In this read, I adored the exploration of the art world and how that has impacted on so many of our characters. It felt really special to be set in the Galapagos as well, in a time when we cannot travel, Picoult ensured we did. Absolutely every aspect of this read was perfection, all the miniscule plot threads come together to form one amazing read.

'Wish You Were Here' is an exceptional read from Picoult, definitely one of my favourites of hers and is absolutely my stand-out read of 2021. This is an incredible read and I cannot recommend it enough. You will not regret reading this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advance copy.

Hooked from the first line! To say I was thrilled to receive this ARC from NetGalley is a major understatement. I read this in 2 days! I am a huge fan of Jodi Picoult, well who isn’t? And this did not disappoint. This is the first novel set in Covid times that I’ve come across. Diana is a go-getter. A Manhattan woman with a plan. She’s working in a dream job at Sotheby’s and is living with a dream guy, a doctor named Finn. She is on target to live her dream life.

However Covid hits NY and Diana’s world is turned upside down. She goes on an epic adventure to the Galápagos Islands and gets stranded there due to the travel restrictions in place. There she meets some amazing characters and has some incredible experiences and comes to the realisation that perhaps her goal driven life isn’t all that’s in store for her.

The storyline hooked me straight in, combined with the beautiful descriptions of the Galapagos and a sweet tender romance, this novel has it all. There was a moment in the book that really bothered me because Covid rules were broken and I was extremely frustrated reading it. Given the context I could understand why but it still bothered me. But this is a fantastic read. Don’t hesitate to pick it up!

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

I've read many books by Jodi , and have loved most of them . I can't say I loved this one , but I ' think ' I enjoyed it.
In case you are wondering why the ' think' , for me , it just didn't quite hit the spot her books usually do.
Jodi is well known for writing about hard hitting subjects , and of course a virus that hits the world is ( don't we all know about that !) just that. It left me just wanting a little bit more.

This is the Jodi Picoult spin on the pandemic. The start of the book is split between alternating of POV’s. The females Perspective was a lot easier for me to read then the males as they were a frontline doctor in New York.

There is a switch to the story mid way through the book that really threw me and was unexpected. I feel like I’m still to close to the pandemic to enjoy the story as intended. Plan to reread it in a couple of years.