At first glance, Diana and Finn appeared to be the perfect match with their dreams carefully mapped out and in lock step. However, as she eloquently stated, when you plan life, you do not truly live. I was certainly shocked by the turn of the book in Section 2 but I do believe that memory will help guide you on the path you are meant to be. Like the Toulouse-Lautec painting that wss further emulated by Kitomi and Sam's record cover, love is vulnerable but can be so fulfilling despite tragedy. I can see why she kept it through Covid as it kept her company. Diana barely escaped her illness but in doing so, she evolved whether it be in her career and her family relationships. She hoped and let fear not the planned path serve her actions.

Wish You Were Here is set at the start of the pandemic. Picoult deftly captures the uncertainty, terror, and emotion surrounding the the onset of COVID-19.

Picoult is a prolific writer who creates characters that are flawed and vulnerable, yet demonstrate some of the very best of the human spirit with their strength and compassion. Diana, although a challenging personality, is one of those characters. At times she is frustrating, but the connections she makes with the Galápagos and its people is not only rewarding to the reader, but some of the most beautiful writing in the book.

The feeling of isolation permeates the narrative, whether it is Diana's struggle of not speaking the language and being the only tourist on the island, to the physical separation of Diana and Finn. This ties into the feeling of desolation and loneliness experienced while under quarantine. The depictions of what the pandemic is like for those on the front line are harrowing, anxiety inducing, and quite frankly, terrifying.

Injecting culture, Wish You Were Here also offers a glimpse into the art world. Diana works for Soethby's as an associate assistant—she is working on acquiring a painting to auction from a character reminiscent of Yoko Ono. Her career trajectory is not only an interesting backstory, it also illustrates her passion and drive as well as her tenacity.

And of course, it wouldn't be a Picoult novel without a mind-blowing twist. She completely blindsides and breaks her reader's heart—but leaves them with hope—in this story about resilience and love.

In the breathtaking beauty of the Galápagos Islands, Diana will learn not only who she really is, but the person she wants to become.

I have a personal rule that I don’t read books about school shootings because I was in one, which is why I’ve read most of Picoult’s books but not Nineteen Minutes. In some ways, this book reminded me of that rule— it hit too close to home. It was too fresh, too real. None of that is necessarily a bad thing— fiction should make us feel, but ever since covid, I’ve retreated to literature for escape, not feeling.

Unlike many (if not all?) of Picoult’s other books, this one is told by only one character, which only serves to intensify the feeling of isolation for Diana.

As always, Picoult delivers on a twist. I thought I had discovered what the twist was, and I was immediately proven wrong. While the story was intriguing, I felt that the climax happened too early, so the rest of the book dragged toward (what I felt was the inevitable conclusion). Overall, an enjoyable read but not my favorite of Picoult’s.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Diane is living her dream in New York. She is dating a doctor and working for Sotheby's. It all changes with covid. Diane questions the decisions she has made in her life. I liked this book.

I have always liked Jodi Picoult's books because they written beautifully, but also because they are always so different, in a way and they make me think and sometimes examine my own life. This book made me do that too. I would say that this one was actually one of my favorites (if you haven't read The Storyteller - go buy in now) because its so relatable. A viral pandemic, thinking of yourself one way, and wanting certain things and then the world turns topsy-turvy, and you wake up and realize...maybe I don't. I won't spoil the ending for you, or what choices Diana makes, but her the journey to her self-realizations and better understanding of herself and the world makes for great reading. You will savor every page and won't want to put it down. I just HAD to know what she was going to do. So I didn't stop reading until I did.

To say that I was shocked by this book is an understatement. When I first saw it, I thought eh I don’t really know if I want to read a book centered around covid, but I am so glad I did.

Wish You Were Here focused on Diana O’Toole, a 29 year old who has her whole life planned out, down to the tropical vacation she is supposed to take with her boyfriend. When he can no longer make the trip with her, she must go alone. That is just the start of her plans changing.

Jodi Picoult transports you into a whole different world. Her beautiful writing captures the parallels of two places during a worldwide crisis. I was so engulfed by Diana’s journey that I could not put the book down. There are themes of self discovery, love, purpose, passion and trauma. While reading this book, you really contemplate all the things that truly matter and think about what makes a life fulfilling. The courage that Diana’s character has is a great lesson. I would recommend this book to anyone in a heartbeat!

This book was the first 5 star book of the year for me, I couldn't put it down! I was reading it on my lunch break which was a mistake because I shed some tears at the end. I didn't think I could stomach a book about Covid especially so soon, but this was a winner!

This was an interesting book to read. Not only because it was entertaining, but also because it was written during the CoVid19 pandemic and the characters dealt with that disruption in their lives. The storyline is that of a busy couple who are "planners". On their list is a vacation to the Galapagos Islands. They are all set to go when the pandemic begins and she goes alone since he is a surgical resident and is needed to stay at the hospital. She becomes stranded on the island completely cut off from her family, friends and life in the big city.

I liked how the author dealt with the topics of relationships, and evaluating life choices. #Wishyouwerehere #netgalley

Diana O' Toole is engaged to be married her fiance Finn a surgeon resident when the COVid pandemic hits.They had planned a romantic getaway to the Galapagos Islamds. But because of the pandemic Finn cannot go but urges Diana to go without him. She protests and is reluctant at first, but finally she agrees to go. They say will write each other daily by email and phone when they can. However, when Diana gets to the Islands she finds it closed. There is no communication nor internet. This is a trip that will change her greatly! The beauty of the island and the people she meets there are all a part of this story. This story is told from three main POVs and Diana is our main character. The two things i love most about Picoult's books are her complex and well defined characters, and that her books are about the dynamics and tensions in relationships. i don't want to give away too much. I'm a huge fan of Jodi Picoult's. What a great book! I highly recommend it. Thank you to Jodi Picoult, the publisher, and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read thi

I did not see that coming. I learned alot. As I always do from Picoults books. She has a way of immersing you so deeply in the setting that you feel as if you've been there. This book was no exception. I enjoyed the characters and their interactions. There were a few chuckles and definitely some tears. Everything I could want from a Jodi Picoult novel.

I'm the kind of person who finds reading books set during the pandemic to be comforting. It helps me process this hell of a time that we are all still living through. If you are not that kind of person, you might want to wait before you read this one.

But if you're ready, then you should not hesitate to pre-order this. Jodi Picoult has outdone herself with "Wish You Were Here." Not only does she tell a compelling and engrossing story, she manages to offer reflections on so many ways our lives have been affected by COVID-19. From patients suffering from the disease, to health care workers on the front lines, furloughed workers, couples navigating their new co-habitation realities, end of life care...there's just SO MUCH in here and I honestly cannot wait to read it again and again.

I don't want to say too much about this book, because I want everyone to experience it for themselves. I will say that this book caused me to think about my life in a different way and I'm so grateful that I was able to read an advanced copy. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

PS: If we know each other in real life, when you get to "that part" can you text me your reaction? You'll know it when you read it.

Jodi Picoult crafts beautiful stories that always, always shock me at least once; Wish You Were Here was no exception. After living a year+ of pandemic life, reading heavy pandemic fiction was a lot, but I think this book will make a great time capsule of this weird moment in all our lives. The story itself was great, as I've come to expect from her.

This book is absolutely wonderful. I loved it so much.
I have it toward the top of my list to read again. This is
one you don't want to miss out on.
I had no idea what this book was about, I went reading
totally blind, and for this book that's exactly what you need
to do. It makes it so much better.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, Jodi Picoult, and your publisher
for allowing me to read and review this amazing read!

First, let me say that you want to go into this one blind. Don’t read too much about it; just dive in. You must trust me on this.
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What happens when you are stripped of all the elements that you think make you who you are? When all of the essentials are stripped away, who are you? And is that you your authentic self or simply the version of yourself that emerges under extreme duress? These are some of the questions that Wish You Were Here evoked.

What I Loved 🌿

✨Like all of her books, this one is thought-provoking and has lingered with me.

✨I loved the elements of the book set in the Galapagos. The remarkable descriptions sent me on a rabbit hole of Googling locations and sites to learn more.

✨The boots on the ground perspective of an NYC doctor in the height of the pandemic were raw and real but also important.  

✨That plot twist I absolutely did not see coming. What?? Hold on what? I’m still thinking about it and will be for a long time to come.

✨The ending. How often do you get literal chills at the end of a book? Not so often for me.

What I Struggled With🌿

✨ Some of the doctor’s descriptions of Covid treatment are very difficult to read, and this may be too soon for some readers. I honestly felt distressed reading some of it.
••••
At its heart, Wish You Were Here reads, at least in part, like a love note to frontline healthcare workers. It is also very much a testament to the grief that comes from being battered and broken by Covid. Whether from suffering with the virus itself or from experiencing the isolation, division and loss of the pandemic, we all have something to grieve. Wish You Were here is a masterful exploration of that theme.

Content Warnings🌿
Self-harm, mention of suicide, Covid

My thanks to Ballantine Books and @NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book before its November 30 publication date. You’re definitely going to want to put this on your TBR.

Disclaimer: full review will be up on pop-culturalist.com

I'm a huge Jodi Picoult fan and this book doesn't disappoint! This book gave me chills and I adored Diana;s narrative in this. Full review coming closer to publication date.

I have voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this title given to me via NetGalley. I really enjoyed this book. It was really well written and it just had you trying to solve the mystery. I look forward to seeing what’s next from this author.

I have loved reading Picoult books since I was first introduced to her writing. She we never disappoints. Her books all seem to go in a straight line so you are completely wrapped in the story and the characters and then she makes a turn that spins your head!

WISH YOU WERE HERE does just that. You are reading about a young woman and her fiancé in the very early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, before the world seem to just stop, for some.

The readers is invested in Diana, the main character from the first sentence. The places have been extensively researched beautifully described. I was so intrigued by the opening chapter, I went to Google to see pictures and read more about the Grand Central Terminal. (No spoilers. This is stated in the second sentence of the book.)

I highly recommend this book.

I almost always love Jodi Picoult books: so well researched, beautifully written, and with so much food for thought. This one is no different. Reading it now, while we're in the midst of the pandemic with a still uncertain resolution, was fascinating and heartbreaking; good to see how far we've come, but scary to think what we could return to. I imagine rereading this book again many years hence, with the perspective of that future time, and finding it equally compelling.

The first half of the book was full of wonderful descriptions of the Galapagos Islands and the people that Diana, the narrator, encountered there. The relationships were well developed and I felt quite invested in them. It was interesting to think how one would feel to find oneself unexpectedly stranded in such a remote place, with barely any contact to the outside world, and having to make do with the scarce accommodations Diana encountered there in paradise while feeling guilty about all she escaped from back home.

The twist that came at the end of part one of the book was perhaps the most surprising one I've ever read. Those last pages of the first part were SO well done; I just couldn't turn the pages fast enough. I keep wanting other people to read the book so I can see if they were equally shocked, and even if I suspect they won't read it, I don't want to tell them anything on the off chance they do, because they should be as floored as I was. I actually enjoyed the second half of the book even more than the first--just really compelling. It covers so many different aspects of the COVID experiences of different people and how it has changed all of us, probably in ways we don't even know yet.

I didn't love the final sentence of the book--seemed a bit too gimmicky to me. On the other hand, I can't really come up with a better ending, Don't miss the Author's Note, though. I once heard her speak at Book Expo around the time "Small Great Things" came out and I loved hearing how thoughtful she is about her choice of topic, how she researches, and the questions she asks herself. It makes me love her books even more.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an e-ARC of this wonderful book.

There are some readers who might think that it's too soon to read books about the pandemic 2020. It was difficult to be reminded of what went in the world after March, 2020, and it did bring back some bad memories. This book is much more than a novel about how the world changed. It's a reminder of how wonderful the front line workers - doctors and nurses -worked in conditions dangerous to their health and were committed to keeping the Covid patients alive when possible. Primarily this is a book about bravery, love and resilience.

Diana is in her late 20s and so far her life has followed the path that she has planned. she wants to be married by 30, have her kids by 35 and move out of NYC to the suburbs. while she moves up the cooperate ladder. Her boyfriend, Finn, is a resident at a NYC hospital and they are planning a trip to the Galápagos to celebrate her birthday. It was early March and people weren't worried about Covid and believed that it would be gone by Easter. Finn comes home from the hospital and his comments make it all very real. His caseload is growing by the day and he expects the country to shut down soon from what he's seeing. Diana is a bit of a skeptic and decides to the Galápagos by herself. Her trip goes well until she gets to the island and finds out that there will be no ferry back to the mainland for at least two weeks, the hotel she was planning to stay at has shut down and her luggage was lost on the trip and there is very poor wifi and she can't communicate with Finn daily as they'd planned. The longer she stays on the island, the calmer she gets about life and her bucket plans for her future. When she does hear from Finn, he gives her information about shutdowns and how many people are dying. His emails to her really bring back the memories of what life was like in 2020 and at times, they were difficult to read. Diana's two weeks on the island becomes longer as the island stays closed down. She meets a local woman who helps her and provides a room for her as well as a man and his daughter. Since she has more free time than she's ever had, she begins to think about her life and the things that she wants to accomplish, she begins to wonder about the changes this trip will make on her life. Will her life change when she gets back to New York City?

As with all Jodi Picoult's books, it's apparent that she has done a lot of research --this time on medical issues and the beauty of the Galapagos. Her characters are very well written and they reflect how all of were dealing with the changes in our lives last year. Have tissue close at hand and get ready to read a fantastic book. Yes, parts of it are painful reminders but at the end of the book the overall feeling is one of hope and love and finding new happiness.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Jodi strikes again and presents a well-thought-out, developed and researched oasis. This one hit close to home, though, with us still in the pandemic while also trying to slowly transition out of the pandemic. As with all of Jodi’s novels, Wish a You Were Here is very thought provoking. It had me thinking how I would get along stranded on an island as well as realizing what kind of soul searching I myself have been doing over the last year and a half. Thank you, Jodi, for all of your hard work in consistently presenting your fans with such a complete package of a story; you never stop short.