Jodi Picoult was once my favorite author. I wish she would go back to the stunningly intricate and amazingly powerful stories that weren't so contrived. I enjoy her early works, but it seems that things have changed and she no longer creates the same level of literature that she once did.

This was such a great book! I could not put it down. I enjoyed how the story unfolded between the two timelines. I couldn't figure out how it was going to go and there were some surprises. There was some historical facts about Egypt and the whole academia of that field, but I found it interesting. There was also some physics and science stuff and I didn't mind it at all. I thought the characters were so well written, particularly the daughter, Meret. I thought she captured the feeling and emotions that come with being a parent. The ending, well actually the last paragraph was not satisfying to me, but overall the book was a 5 star read. Highly recommended!

Dawn is a death doula, someone who is there for others as they are confronting their mortality. She used to be an Egyptologist and she dreamed of making great discoveries but her life path took her another way and she stayed in Boston away from digs and is married to a physicist and they have a teen daughter. However as the novel opens she’s headed back to Egypt to confront her past and as the plane begins to experience major turbulence and passengers and crews prepare for a crash her thoughts are on the handsome, Win who stole her heart. What if her decisions had been different, how would her life have turned out?

There is so much to unpack in this novel from the what-ifs to archeology and from physics to the afterlife. It is a lot and while I like a bit of all the things mentioned, well maybe not physics, trying to put all of this in a novel did not work out well in my opinion. And, then there is the ending. I read this long, slow book for that ending? I’m sorry, I think Picoult can really write an engaging story but this was not one of those.

Not gonna lie; I was a bit confused reading through this book. Dawn is a death Dylan (someone who helps terminally ill patients through the death process); however her first passion was Egyptology which she was studying before being called home to her mother's sickbed. She and Wyatt(partner and mentor) were on the verge of a breakthrough with The Book of Two Ways (Egypts answer to the path that wasn't taken) now, 15 years later, Dawn is married with a daughter and practicing as a death dula when she meets her client who asks her to deliver a message to an old flame before she dies. This starts Dawn's escape to follow the path that wasn't taken....back to Wyatt. The last 100 pages was probably the best.

This was not my favorite book of jodies. It was hard to get through however I am looking forward to a future book of hers

This story has the classic “road not taken” vibes. After surviving a plane crash, the main character can fly wherever she’d like (though I’m not sure I’d want to get back on a plane after surviving a crash). Instead of going home to hubby, she goes to see an old friend instead. I was interested In the characters and wanted to find out what her ultimate choices would be. Decent read!

This is a beautifully written book with an interesting premise, but there were a lot of detailed discussions about Egyptology. I felt like I’d taken a class by the end of the book! The sheer number of technical descriptions detracted from the story in my opinion. I did enjoy it, but the book took a long time to read. 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I did not care for this book and neglected to leave a review because of it. I should have done so.

I will say that I have loved so very much of this author's work that I have purchased her work for friends and family. this one just didn't do it for me.

I'm a huge fan of Jodi Picoult's books. I've been reading her books for decades.

I don't know if it was my mood or what, but I couldn't get into this one. It was too dry for me and I ended up stopping it before I finished. The premise is fascinating - a "slidjng doors" concept of alternate realities/possible worlds.

Surviving a crash gives new perspective to the main character's life, and a new lease on life and revisiting what could have been. I wanted to enjoy this one, but just struggled to stay motivated to care about the characters.

Jodi Picoult is a true writer. With enough research and a hefty imagination, she can pull readers into any number of stories. This book is no exception. Marriage, Egypt, past, present, mother/daughter relations, death. It has it all. Great read!

I love Jodi Picoult books so much and this was so different from her usual style! I enjoyed it though and will forever be an auto-buy author from me!

I did not read The Book of Two Ways through an educator lens.

The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult was not something I enjoyed. Normally, she is one of my favorite authors. This book seemed to have too much going on. The characters were very enjoyable and relatable, but the scientific context of everything was too much.

Jodi is one of my favorite authors and The Book of Two Ways did not disappoint! I was left feeling so sad that it was over and wanted to be in this world for longer. It had a few twists that I didn't see coming and a few that I picked up on. Jodi's writing is so wonderful and even though it was a tad heavy on things I didn't totally understand (Egypt and archaeology), I really really enjoyed it. I would say a definite 4 stars, just shy of 5.

As always, Jodi Picoult does not disappoint. Although not a fan of ancient Egypt history, I found myself captivated by the characters in this book and the authors' writing style goes a long way in keeping things interesting and holding your attention while reading.

*** 3.5 Stars***

This starts with Dawn on a plane with a flight attendant announcing that there will be a crash landing. She immediately begins thinking of a man she last was with 15 years ago and not her husband. Dawn survives the crash and then the story begins alternating between her lives in Boston with her husband, Brian and their daughter where Dawn works has a death doula and in Egypt where she worked previously with Wyatt on ancient Egyptian burial sites. She begins to contemplate her decisions that made her leave Egypt and her relationship with Wyatt that led her to her current husband Brian.

Jodi Picoult is a great story teller, but this is not one of my favorites by her. I was emotionally invested in the characters as I expected to be but the amount of Egyptian history and references become monotonous and wordy. I feel like this could have been just as good of a read by being 1/3 shorter. Having said that, I really did enjoy the story line and had tears in my eyes by the end. It really provoked deep thought in myself and had me analyzing my life decisions. I would recommend this read, just with the understanding it is a slow burn with a lot of Egyptian history added in that doesn't necessarily contribute to the story and the emotion.

Special Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine for allowing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Jodi Picoult knocks it out of the park with this one. The story was, as always, fantastic. Picoult is a master story-weaver, and The Book of Two Ways is no exception. I was fascinated by Dawn's story, and could not put this one down. The blend of worlds was truly epic, and I hated when I was done with it.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Ballantine books for my copy of The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult in exchange for an honest review. It published September 22, 2020.
This was my first completed book by Jodi Picoult, and I can understand why she has such a huge following. This book has it all, intensely researched material, drama, romance etc. I found the topic of ancient Egypt and death to be fascinating for a book topic and I was definitely hooked and interested.
I didn't necessarily agree with everything, but I learned a lot and I think it was worth the time it took to read it!

I have mixed feelings about The Book of Two Ways. I liked the glimpse into Egypt and its study. Also appreciate that old dilemma of the 'path less traveled' and the question of 'what could have been?' However, I am not sure how I feel about that ending....

I usually love Jodi Picoult books, but this one had too much of the Egyptian history in it. I loved the premise, but it got bogged down with the history. I know Picoult usually tries to take a modern topic and write about it, but it didn't work for me with this one. I'll keep reading her, though.

I have read many Jodi Picoult novels over the years. I know after awhile, they all started to feel the same, following the same format. (Big Event Happens, followed by Court Room drama, followed by surprise twist ending). The good news is, this book does NOT follow that format. This book is about a woman in a struggling marriage who decides to go back and the love she left behind. However, this book dragged, and I didn't really care for the main character or her love interest. I don't typically have much patience for these types of plots where a woman leaves her marriage to find the one that got away. It feels gross.