this book was so powerful and in this time, i wish everyone would read it. since it deals with COVID and the pandemic, it will either be extremely triggering or cathartic for readers since we're still so deep into this world without a clear path to recovery. however, for me i found it to be so cathartic. Picoult is such an amazing writer and truly was able to articulate SO many of my feelings and thoughts about the last 2 years and the situation we have been in. it made me feel so many emotions, and there is one twist in here that truly left my mouth WIDE open!

cannot wait to see this come to live in film/series. thank you so much to netgalley and the team at Ballantine for gifting this to me. i will remember it forever and already want to re-read!

Narrator performance: 5 stars
Overall rating: 3.5 stars

Wish You Were Here is my third pandemic focused read, you'd think it'd be preferred to shy away from these but in fact, I'm finding these oddly refreshing. Hearing pandemic experiences that are starkly different from my own is enlightening.

Diana is an art dealer just about to head to the Galapagos with her doctor boyfriend in March 2020 when the pandemic shifts into its first wave. Her boyfriend must stay in NYC but she decides to go, only to find the island closed to tourists. She decides to stay anyway and the story follows her interactions with the locals and discovery of her true self as she is isolated from the pandemic and regular communications home. Here and there she will find wifi and get an email from her boyfriend pouring out the miseries of the pandemic from the heart of it. The dichotomy of it is interesting to observe.

I wished for a little more majesty of the Galapagos, there are scenes of it but most of Diana's focus is on the people. That may just be my personal preference as an introvert biologist though... I enjoyed Diana's experience and how her revelations were similar to many people in the pandemic where they realize the day to day choices they've made prior don't really hold up to what's really in their heart. 

Truly this is like two books, mid-stream the story takes a turn and I was so surprised by that I almost didn't keep going with it. Picoult is good at that gut punch, isn't she? I'm glad I stuck with it although I preferred the first half of the book to the second, I also didn’t think it needed the epilogue and my overall rating reflects those two things.

Also I've decided Marin Ireland is my favorite audiobook narrator. I read this book half on my kindle with the early copy I got from Netgalley and half on Libro.fm with an ALC. I rarely prefer the audiobook to actually reading but as it was with Cloud Cuckoo Land, Marin's voice added so much to the story. I am definitely going to be looking out for her in more reads. All opinions above are my own.

This was a beautiful story. It was tough to read in the moment, because we are still experiencing the effects of the pandemic. However, it was real and raw, which it what Picoult is best at. It is heavy, but so good. Definitely recommend.

Wow! This was nothing that I expected. I am not even sure how to talk about this book without spoilers. While I still have a hard time reading about Covid, since we still seem to be in the middle of it, the way Jodi Picoult came to the story and how it was laid out was amazing. I read this in less than 24 hours. Fabulous book.

Jodi Picoult was my first true auto buy author, and I continue to look forward to her new work. While this one was not among my favorite of hers, it was another great example of her ability to write beautiful, smoothly readable stories about truly thought-provoking situations. Clearly the subject matter of the early pandemic is heavy stuff, but I also loved the inclusion of human consciousness, human brain studies as it relates to the story and the discussion of how the pandemic forced so many to really evaluate their current situations. And - as I’ve come to love and expect - I never anticipated where the story was heading.

With regards to the Covid-heavy subject matter, I can absolutely understand that for many, the topic is just too soon. It was interesting to see the early stages of the pandemic play out across the pages. Even just 2 years later, so many of those details had already left my mind. I appreciated the use of letters to provide that background – as opposed to just including it in the narrative – though I do feel like Finn’s letters really read as someone recounting those days at a later time. For me it felt as though the despair came too quickly, the ability to reflect on the larger scale seemed too fast. Not necessarily a criticism, how can any of us ever return to those people we were “before” all of this, or really remember our thought processes from that time given all that we know now.

While I enjoyed the story overall, I never really connected to the characters nor cared too much about their outcomes. The final third felt a bit rushed compared to the first 2, and I honestly could have read an entire book about Kitomi Ito. Similarly, when Diana went researching, I would have loved to see the discussions surrounding that expanded on as well. This would definitely be a great book club read as there are so many interesting themes presented throughout that would certainly spark some spirited discussions.

Review of Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Diana has her life mapped out in front of her and other than one small adjustment, it’s remained on course …. Until it wasn’t anymore. She and Finn were meant to go on vacation to the Galápagos and he was supposed to propose. She was supposed to engineer the auctioning of a piece of art which would show her boss just what she could do and she was supposed to get promoted. What wasn’t supposed to happen was a global pandemic that paused everything and nothing at the same time. Finn insists that Diana go on the trip to the Galápagos without her - it will keep her safe and he’ll be working ‘round the clock anyways - so she goes. Only to get there and find out that the island has shut down. Diana finds herself stranded on an island with nothing and no one familiar and doesn’t even speak the language. She manages to befriend some locals and during her unexpected extended stay, learns more about herself than ever before. And when she returns to the New York, she and Finn find that each of their traumatic experiences have impacted them in ways they never could have expected.

Wish You Were Here is a timely story with Covid being front and center - just as it has been for the last year and a half. But it’s also a story of relationships, personal growth, and resilience. I am always captivated by the level of research that goes into Picoult’s books and this one had my attention so quickly. It’s one book that should resonate with a global audience and readers can easily find connections to. It’s not just about a lockdown - it’s about the courageous frontline workers and the horrors they witnessed; the separation and loneliness between families. Most importantly, it’s a story of hope. Readers won’t expect the twist that seems to come out of no where but like me, I think they will appreciate it. I will say that before picking this book up, if you’re not ready to read vivid descriptions of the experiences of those in the epicenter of Covid, then you may want to pause on this book as it can only be described as heavy - though hopefully with time it won’t feel so heavy.

Thank you @RandomHouse [#partner] for gifting me with an early readers copy in exchange for an independent and honest review!

⚠️ Trigger Warning: Covid-19; Self Harm

Wow. This book . . . just . . . there are no words. I wasn't prepared for the anxiety and stress I felt while reading this, especially the beginning. In the beginning of the book, when the pandemic is just beginning and there are all of two dozen cases in NYC, people are just so naive and unprepared for the severity of what is coming. I actually had to put the book down because I was feeling more stressed out than I thought I would. I honestly don't want to reveal too much about Diana and Finn because I want everything that happens to be a surprise to the reader. I will say that Finn is a resident at a hospital and his descriptions of everything that was happening at the hospital and his emotions and obvious helplessness were so incredibly powerful and moving and made me want to hug every nurse and doctor who worked on the front lines. This was an incredible book that NEEDS to be read!

To be honest, I wasn't sure if I was ready to tackle a novel that not only takes place during COVID, but so much of the plot focuses on it. But I thought I'd give it a try, and I'm so happy that I did. Without giving anything away, I had a really hard time with Part 1. It didn't seem realistic and I had some issues with the main character, however, once you get to Part 2 -- it HOOKED me. This is one that will make you think and reflect on everyone's experiences this past year and give you so many feels.

Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors and still remains to be. However, I will admit that I was a bit nervous because I knew it touched on COVID.

Diana and Finn have planned the dream vacation to the Galápagos Islands. When New York is ravaged by the virus, Finn, who is a resident at a large hospital, has to stay behind.

Jodi was able to capture the stark reality of the pandemics first wave and capture the fear and exhausting side the healthcare workers were fighting. These chapters were captivating and, at times, made me hold my breath.

I had a hard time getting into this story because of how close it hits home right now, but once I did I couldn’t put it down. It is overwhelming and thought provoking and the character’s experiences are relatable and make you feel something, it did not disappoint!

Picoult wrote a beautiful book about finding what matters in life, learning from and about relationships, and personal growth in Wish You Were Here. There is so much I really liked about the themes, the characters, and storyline of the book. Set at the beginning of COVID-19, Picoult was able to capture so many of the emotions, life changes, and struggles we all experienced during this stage of the pandemic. However, as we continue to live in a global pandemic where cases continue to rise, there is also part of this plot that is just "too soon."

Set during the early months of the coronavirus pandemic about a young woman who ends up stranded on an island in the Galapagos while her boyfriend is at home working on the front line as a surgeon.

I have read plenty of Jodi Picoult books and I have found her to be my favorite author. But this wasn’t what I had hoped it to be. I thought it would be nice to read about what is going on in the world but from a “fictitious” POV. But this left me with more questions than answers. I loved the beginning and it started off really strong but it fell flat towards the end. The ending felt like a cliff hanger to me which I also wasn’t a fan of because I know Jodi Picoult doesn’t do sequels to her books. I wish I could have given this more stars!! It was well written just not a book I enjoyed.

After not enjoying (or finishing) Picoult's last book I was eagerly awaiting this book and hoping I would enjoy it as I have with her other books. I was a little on the fence about if I wanted to read about the pandemic while we are still in it but as I was forced to quarantine I figured why not so I gave it a try. I loved the Galapagos sections of the book and definitely enjoyed the first half of the book more than the section half. The second half just fell a little flat for me and although I appreciate Picoult's depiction of someone surviving COVID and the aftermath of all that involves I just felt like it was a little too focused on the recovery part and not enough on the relationship between Finn and Diana and Diana and her mom. Overall it was a good read and it kept my interest but I did not enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed Picoult's other books.

Relatable and direct, this book hits personally. Jodi Picoult weaves a story that catches current vibes socially while addressing the seriousness of our current pandemic. Her style is easily read but masterful in complexity. You cannot stop reading this book once you start. You simply have to know how it ends.....thought provoking!

This book was utterly amazing. So many amazing books have come from Covid and this is definitely one of the best ones. Tragic, beautiful, heartbreaking, even haunting are some of the ways I would describe this beautiful book.


I preordered a copy for myself and my mother for Christmas.

What an interesting way to bring together so many facets of this pandemic we've been living in! I was engrossed in Diana's experience, completely... Did not want to stop reading!

Wish You Were Here, by Jodi Picoult (a tried and true favorite for me), makes no bones about being a Covid story. Picoult wrote this while living in NYC in the early months of lockdown. The main character is an art seller stranded on “vacation” in the Galapagos (the home of Darwin’s natural selection theories), while her boyfriend is back in the states working nonstop as a resident in the hospital as Covid wreaks havoc on the city. The descriptions of Covid in this book are detailed / graphic, and it was, even for me, difficult to read at times (I honestly think it would be too much for someone who lived through 2020 in NYC or worked with Covid patients); BUT, the “twist” about halfway thru made this one of the best books I’ve read in a while… I don’t want to give anything away, but trust me on this. Don’t quit before 50%!!

I’m sorry… I know this is getting raving reviews (currently sitting at 4.15/5 on Goodreads with 21,177 ratings), I know this is Jodi Picoult, and I know I should have loved this, but I just… didn’t.

Diana, a woman with her life planned and on track, ends up traveling alone to the Galapagos at the beginning of the pandemic while her boyfriend, Finn, stayed behind for his job at the hospital. Yet things go awry when the island shuts down and she becomes stranded. Though she connects with a local family, this time alone sets Diana down a rabbit hole examining her own life and where she wants to be.

To start with the positives, I do think the writing was beautiful. I also think Jodi Picoult tried something interesting with the direction of the plot that delivered a shock value that seems to be going over well with the masses.

HOWEVER - I thought the plot twist was strange, the main character became overtly frustrating, and the story line became super repetitive (pre plot twist and post plot twist) that this felt like a chore to pick up.

Jodi Picoult is known for writing about really hard-hitting topics that generally make an impact. And yet, I didn’t enjoy this story. I honestly just don’t think I was ready for a book about the pandemic in general when we’re literally still living this nightmare. This wasn’t fun for me – but there is very clearly an audience for this so I encourage you to go read some more positive reviews and decide for yourself if this one is for you!

Thank you to Ballantine Books and to NetGalley for the ARC!

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult is a beautifully written story about love and resilience during the pandemic.


Synopsis:

Diana O’Toole has goals. She will be married to her boyfriend and have kids before the age of thirty-five. Even though her boyfriend, Finn, has not proposed yet, she is sure that it will happen on their trip to the Galapagos islands for her birthday.

But, when more and more people in New York City start having patients who are getting sick, her boyfriend, a surgical resident, must stay to help the community. Diana goes on without him and while she is on the island realizes that she cannot get back to Finn for a very long time.

Stuck on a small island where she does not know the language and the hotel has been closed, Diana must learn to navigate a whole new world in paradise while the world is in the trenches of a pandemic. When will Diana be back with her love Finn who is tirelessly working day in and out? With so much time on her hands, Diana starts to question her life choices, her career in the art auction world and her relationships.

Thoughts:
-This book was well done to me, as a person who did not lose someone during the pandemic.

-Loved the description of the Galapagos Islands

-I do not want to say too much about this story to avoid giving anything away.

-As always thank you to all essential workers who continuously work with the public.

I would definitely recommend this book if you are okay with reading about the pandemic. I thought it would be a little too soon but ended up really enjoying this story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

😳🤯😒💔

I was not ready for a pandemic story, however, I usually go into books blind and Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors, so I stuck with it. I'm glad I did because I was taken on a trip to the Island of Galapagos with Diana, who was supposed to be on a romantic getaway with her boyfriend, Finn, but he had to stay back to work at the hospital.

If you've never read anything by Picoult, you're missing out. She is a master storyteller 🥰 That being said, keep in mind this story is focused around covid and may be triggering for some.

Thank you Netgalley for the complimentary book ❤️ as always, all opinions are mine.

Narrator 5 ⭐