I love Jodi Picoult and all of her books I've read so far, but I just couldn't get into this one. I do appreciate the chance to read this from Netgalley, especially since it wasn't from a pre-approved publisher. The story sounded very good, but the Egyptian research was too much like reading a very boring text book. I tried skimming through those parts, but found there were just too many and they probably were somehow important to the storyline. Because of this I decided not to finish reading the book. I hope I am still invited to read her future books, but just couldn't read this one.

Remarkable. Excuse me for speaking in words describing how this book made me feel; culturally enriched, fortitude of character, bursts of color, stars, two people who created a whole, deep permutations of love. I really took my time reading this and in fact, re read passages numerous times to ensure I captured the level of detail and emotion. Even though the ending did not reveal the ultimate decision, I think I knew the answer all along. Although Dawn may have specialized in death, light moved her forwards to him. A truly beautiful book.

Jodi Piccoult is my all time favorite author but I did not enjoy this one. Mainly because I am not interested in Egypt and mummies. I did learn some things along the way. I am sure that many people will enjoy this book and I will purchase it for the library.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review. I have read many Jodi Picoult books and loved all of them. This book falls short of my expectations. I enjoyed the characters and the chapters about Boston. The alternating chapters about Egypt were too detailed and boring. This book felt like a textbook about Egypt, mummies, hieroglyphics, Egyptian tombs and science. The characters and their stories are interesting , but, I would have enjoyed less narrative about Egypt..

I have never read a bad Picoult book, and her latest stunner is no exception. I have found myself shirking responsibilities this last week to gain a few precious moments to read whenever possible.

The things about her writing that strike me as coming to a head in this novel are:

1. I always learn something. In this case, the surface subject is Egyptology and the Ancient Egyptians'relationship with death. There's a deeper if not subtle aspect that deals with all our relationships with death, and there's something for most of us to learn there, too.

2. Life and death, and how we handle them, are a motif in her writing--here the main character, a death doula, makes this more explicit than even these usual Picoult novel.

In the end, if you're into reading that requires a lot of deep analysis, this may not be for you, but if you want to read a book with human characters, a book that makes you feel (sometimes painfully) what it is to be human, definitely make this your next book.

The Book of Two Ways
Jodi Picoult
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.75 stars rounding up to 4 stars. I was so exited to receive an early edition of Jodi Picoults newest book The Book of Two Ways. I really did enjoy the storyline but I wish it were an easier read. The book is split up between two different places, there were certain chapters that I loved, kept my attention and felt strong connections with the characters. I found Dawn to be an intriguing character and was drawn to her because she is such a selfless woman. She is studying in Egypt and gets a call that her mom is in hospice. Dawn puts her life on hold including her career as a Egyptologist to care for her sick mom and becomes a guardian to her brother. She meets Brian who is losing his grandmother and is in hospice too. They are brought together though heartbreak and they start their lives together quickly as she finds out she is pregnant. She becomes a social worker and eventually death doula and this is the part of the story I loved. It’s clear from the beginning that her husband Brian is not the love of her life but she does love him, they are going through there own struggles. I loved to see her connection with a patient Win who is dying. It is Win who reminds Dawn of what may of been. The story flashes back to when Dawn was in Egypt discovering tombs and falling in love with Wyatt. These flashbacks were sometimes difficult to get through because I felt like I was in back in school- the verbiage and descriptions of escavating tombs, symbolism and hyroglifics went way over my head and I was losing momentum in the story. The same was true of her husband Brian who is a physicist - there was way to much quantum physics the talks of living life in alternative universes that at times it made me want to stop reading.
Deep down the story is one of many layers, thought provoking and eye opening. Dawn is questioning the life she left behind and she needs to find out what would of been... I had a very hard time rating this book because deep down I loved the story, unfortunately there was many roadblocks.

Thank you to NetGalley and Jodi Picoult for giving me an early release of The Book of Two Ways.

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Jodi Picoult is an excellent writer. There is no doubt about that. I don't always agree with her viewpoints but she writes really well.

I enjoyed this book a lot. It is well-written, heartfelt, and full of interesting information. I enjoyed the parts about Egyptology a lot, and the parts about being a death doula were well done, if sad.

The story is clever in that the Egyptian Book of Two Ways is a metaphor for the life that Dawn follows down two paths following a traumatic event.

The only thing I didn't like was the "twist" at the end, where you think the timelines are finally resolving, is really confusing. I thought I had missed something in trying to figure out what was happening. I still think that this section should be re-written to be less confusing. While I enjoyed the ending I am still confused about exactly how this came about.

This book is also dichotomous in that it is heavier in the romance than her other books that I have read, and at the same time it has sections of dry information about physics and Egyptology.

Overall a solid 4 stars in that I enjoyed the book!

I received an ARC as a reviewer for NetGalley

Dawn Edelstein has had two loves in her life. Wyatt, is an Egyptologist who she met 15 years earlier, when she was also getting a degree in Egyptology. They met in Egypt and were initially oil and water but sometimes it is those individuals who you think you hate, who end up becoming a bright fire of passion in your world. Dawn left Egypt precipitously, when she learned that her Mother was dying, and in a twist of fate, met the other love of her life, her later to become husband and father of her beloved daughter, Merit. When Dawn sets out on an errand for a client of hers who is dying, in her role as a death doula, she is in for a rude awakening. When the plane almost crashes, it is not her husband who comes to mind, but her long lost love, Wyatt.

Jodi Picoult takes us on a journey from past to present, from Egyptology to Physics, from life to death and from loss to becoming found. While this was not one of my favorite Picoult books, it was a remarkable tale tackling subjects I have never even heard of, let alone understood prior to reading this novel. Picoult remains one of my favorite authors and this book is well worth reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for an ARC copy. I was beyond excited to receive this copy as I have been a very long time fan of Jodi Picoult. I love the depth of information she provides in relation to the topic in her books. She clearly researches the subject matter before she begins to wrap a story about it, whether it is autism, suicide, racism, familial relationships, etc. I was ready to dig into this story, expecting to dive deep into a new subject.

What I was not expecting was an almost textbook narrative on Egyptology! Interesting yes, but I found the immense amount of time spent on the details was unnecessary to the major plot. I loved the dilemmas the main character was facing at a later point in her life, I loved the back and forth between her past and the present. And, I also loved the side plot of her role as a death doula. I just found the level of detail to be distracting from the main story line.

It's not to say I didn't enjoy the book and I am really glad I got to the finish because the last section was the essence of what I love about Jodi Picoult novels. So, don't avoid this book but you may want to skip the sections that dive into the details of Egyptology!

Another masterpiece from the author known for pulling at your heart strings.
I really loved this book. It had so many levels to it. There was the love triangle for almost every single character in the book.
The history of the Pharaohs. The Book of Two Ways.
I loved how much the author researched Egypt and told of the dying.
I liked the characters, I liked that not one character had a made a big mistake. It was all so relatable.
What would you do, if given the chance to go back to a previous point in time in your life?
So good, so well researched, so wonderful.
BRAVO to Jodi Picoult for this AMAZING book.

Generally, I like Picoult's books. They always have a great premise and promise a consistent, smooth, (albeit gentle) read. This book however felt more like a slog.

As many other reviewers noted, the section concerning Egyptology were dense as heck. Fascinating stuff, but deep and text-book like. That meant all of the Egypt sections started to feel long to me. I felt like the relationship drama (which is never fully resolved) took a backseat to details on what Egyptian God did what and the the specifics of how to excavate a tomb.

The Boston sections fare better, in my opinion. I found the concept of being a death doula to be fascinating and loved exploring Dawn's relationship with Win. Save for again some deep dives into Quantum Physics, these sections seemed more accessible and allowed you to get closer to the idea of the paths we take in live--the choices we make--and how that affects the journey we have.

Overall, I though the IDEA of this book was spectacular. And I thought there were some beautiful passages, like this one: "Getting what you want isn't instant gratification. It's a slow pulling apart, a realignment of bones and sinew. There are aches involved. There is bruising." The book overall just felt a bit out of balance (perhaps more a problem of editing, than writing.)

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I received a copy of this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

As a huge fan of Jodi Picoult I was super excited to get the chance to read this book early. I love how all her books have a twist at the end that you never see coming.

The book starts out with Dawn, who is on a plane that crashes. She survives the crash. This is where the book splits off into two paths. The book of Two Ways is an Egyptian book of how to get to the afterlife..The book has two paths: Land and Water. One has her going back to to her husband and daughter. The other going to Egypt to be with Wyatt, her lover from 15 years ago.

Overall, I enjoyed the book but at times the details about quantum physics and Egypt were a bit too much and sometimes distracted from the story itself.

About halfway through, I thought I had the twist figured out. Turns out I was wrong. I'm still not sure how I feel about the ending, even after a few days to process it. I even went back to read it again, thinking maybe I missed a part.

It is definitely worth the read.

4/5 stars

Dawn Edelstein's life is forever changed when she is called home from Egypt by her dying mother. This call forces her to trade one life path for another. Fifteen years later she is led to face the past she left behind.

Picoult's The Book of Two Ways began rather slowly for me. Although I love Ancient Egyptian history, I found it hard to focus on the plot. It was almost too much for me when intertwined with the story making it difficult to take it all in. It also jumped between time periods frequently during the first half of the book which made it difficult to follow. With that being said, the second half of the book is reminiscent of the Jodi Picoult books I adore. The characters and their stories are SO good. I wish the book had focused more on that and less on the textbook aspects which encompassed the first half. Character and plot development are what Jodi Picoult does so well, and it took awhile to get there in this novel.

My recommendation is skim the heavy (textbook) parts of the novel and focus on the story. Thank you NetGalley for an arc by one of my favorite authors.

Jodi Picoult can do no wrong in my opinion! I enjoyed the story here and she always delivers. Personally, I struggled with some of the Egypt stuff as I'm not as familiar/hooked on it as I should be, so that part never connected the way some of her other topics have. Still, nobody can write a story like Picoult and have characters that you feel you know on a deep level. Great read!

THE BOOK OF TWO WAYS
BY JODI PICOULT

I was really grateful to receive my Advanced Reader's Copy of THE BOOK OF TWO WAYS, by JODI PICOULT. It was a novel that is near and dear to my heart. My oldest son always wanted to be an archaeologist and this novel gave me a greater understanding of what he might be doing. In this novel The Book of Two Ways was symbolic of the different life path's one can choose. Either the one you are currently on or the one you wish you took. Which one is the right path to living your best life?

In this novel the book starts out with an airplane crash and then alternates sections about Dawn McDowell as a graduate student at Yale getting her PhD in Egyptology in 2003 and fifteen years later in 2018 going back to Egypt to see Wyatt Armstrong the other teaching assistant whom she was the other under Professor Dumphries in 2003. In 2018 Wyatt Armstrong has taken over the dig in Egypt and has finished his publication of his dissertation and has taken Professor Dumphrie's position as Yale's Director of Near Eastern Studies. In between these two time period's Dawn has gotten married to Brian Edelstein and has had a daughter named Meret who she loves fiercely.

Brian is a physicist who teaches Quantum Mechanics and is a professor. Dawn met Brian when she got a call that her mother was dying in hospice and his grandmother had recently died. Brian stayed at the hospice for Dawn's sake to be a shoulder to lean on. Brian's income as a professor has allowed Dawn to become a Death Doula. Someone who is not only there for her dying client but to also help the grieving family members. Dawn will help the dying with any unfinished business as happens with her current client Winifred Morse who lives in Newtonville and asks Dawn to help her write a letter to Win's former boyfriend who she met before her current husband Felix. Her boyfriend she met as an artist.

Dawn and Win have something in common.

What I was most impressed about in Jodi Picoult's newest novel and I have loved all of them, but in this one she really succeeds in making me feel the power of love in all its different forms. The love that is so powerful for your child. The love that is a grateful love towards a spouse in a long term marriage. The love for your first love that has been interrupted for some reason and a longing and wonder to how thing's might have been had you had the chance to pursue it. The niggling wonder to what might have been...?

Dawn's marriage to Brian has hit a rough patch after fifteen years. In what Dawn suspects as Brian cheating by Brian helping out his PhD student named Gita install an air conditioner. Brian forgets Meret's birthday celebration dinner while he is helping Gita. Is that really considered an emotional affair? What I appreciated about the way Jodi Picoult writes this narrative is in a conversation that Brian has many times with Dawn telling her that Gita means nothing to him. He expresses this to Dawn several times but she still thinks he had an emotional affair but Picoult asks the reader did Brian really have an affair or is that just Dawn's interpretation? I love how Brian tells Dawn at fifteen years of marriage "Love is a choice." Dawn doesn't think that her going back and seeing Wyatt is cheating because Brian did it first, but did he really? That question is left open for the reader to decide. I think that Brian is committed to Dawn and Meret. It was clear to me that Brian's priority was Dawn and his daughter Meret. He is an example of the the symbolism of this book's title. So isn't the symbolism of this novel's title in how Winifred Morse thinks it is okay to do what she does which again is a powerful love towards Thane and also
a wholesome love towards her current husband Felix. Both women justify what they are doing is okay but I considered to be a profound love by their words on the written page. I LOVED THIS NOVEL FOR THE STRENGTH AND NUANCES OF ALL OF THE MYRIAD WAYS THAT A PERSON CAN LOVE. This is Jodi Picoult's prowess as a skilled author and she has hit another home run with her latest work. Her talent is illuminated once again for her ability to make me feel. I will read everything that she writes in the future. Every time she writes a book it is strong and this one is both multilayered but also interesting and touched my heart. The Book of Two Ways is not just symbolic of Egyptology but also many ways in this novel but mostly to life.

Thank you to Net Galley, Jodi Picoult and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for providing me with my ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Publication Date: September 22, 2020

#TheBookofTwoWays #JodiPicoult #RandomHousePublishing-Ballantine #NetGalley

I don’t know where I am with this. It was a lovely book. I absolutely am fascinated with Egypt. It is on my bucket list. But this book was heavy with the topic, almost fifty percent of the story in truth. The book was choppy, going back and forth in time. I could get used to this, but ,Abe it was the kindle app with a lack of clear endings and chapters that did not help. I also dislike ambiguous endings for the most part. I read the ending twice and the first time left me disappointed. When I reread it again, I came to another conclusion that made sense and made me happier, but I may never know if it was the right one.

The story of a death doula is amazingly lovely. Having worked in hospice, I realize how truly amazing a journey towards death is, while so painful, when done with hospice and with life reviews, it can be lovely. So much growth to be had.

So this book had things that I loved, Egypt. Hospice work. Social work. Passionate love.

I’ll give it a go, even with my critiques.

I have been a fan of Jodi Picoult since I fell in love with “The Pact,” so an opportunity to read an advance copy of “The Book of Two Ways” was like getting an opportunity to open Christmas gifts before Thanksgiving. The novel has an intriguing premise—Dawn, a death doula (did not know such a profession existed) is on a flight when she is told to prepare for a crash landing. In those final moments, she flashes back to a part of her past; given a second chance, might she have done something differently?

Dawn survives and when the airline provides her a ticket to her next destination, Dawn has to decide whether she wants to return to her husband and fourteen-year-old girl in Boston or head off to Egypt where she can finish an archaeology project (understanding the “Book of Two Ways” and how ancient Egyptians believed that there were two routes—through land and water—to get to the afterlife) she had started more than a decade ago—and possibly reconnect with her first love, Wyatt.

“The Book of Two Ways” allows Dawn to choose both options, and Ms. Picoult, the master storyteller she is, finds ways for those two different paths to intertwine. The novel also flashbacks to when Dawn first met Wyatt all of those years ago and explains why the two of them did not get their happily ever after. The sense of realism and poignancy Ms. Picoult brings to her writing is all there—I was in the sweltering desert with a younger Dawn as she tries to make sense of the art and symbols included in these tombs just as I was back in Boston as she interacts with her daughter (with an intriguing twist), husband, and makes a difference helping those terminally ill make the transition to the afterworld. (And yes, if you think of her choice in career had anything to do with her earlier studies of a student, you are correct).

What frustrated me as a reader was how Ms. Picoult, who always does her research, oversaturated the novel with so much information—Egyptology, hieroglyphs, quantum physics (Dawn’s husband is a physicist). I had to stop reading and pull myself out of the story just to look up some of the terms and vocabulary the author was using for better comprehension. Because of that, I found myself skimming sections, and you do not skim sections of a Jodi Picoult novel, but reread and underline favorite phrases. This novel still has those memorable parts—when Ms. Picoult steps away from sharing information with her reader—I am so engaged that I am right there by Dawn’s side. Her ability to articulate human nature through her characters and their choices can still tug on the right heart strings. You have to muck your way through all of the additional information, but the final destination is still the same; a story that will resonate with you long after you finish the final page.

Thank you to Jodi Picoult, Random House Publishing Group, and Net Galley for a chance to read and review this novel.

Another satisfying read from Jodi Picoult. I especially enjoyed it because of the subject matter which centered on Egypt. I give this book a solid four stars.

Jodi Piccoult has done it again! The Book of Two Ways tells the story of Dawn and how she is pulled between her past and her present. The story is incredibly written and at times had me sobbing because I was so involved and connected to the characters. Another aspect to this book is the information it gives on Egyptian history. If this isn't for you, skim through the facts because the story of Dawn is worth it to keep reading. Thank you NetGalley for the eARC!

I loved this beautiful book, which is about roads (or lives) not taken. Dawn is a mother to a young daughter and a wife to Brian, but years ago, she was an Egyptologist, excavating tombs with the handsome and charismatic Wyatt. She leaves Egypt, and Wyatt, abruptly to attend to her dying mother at home, and then meets Brian. She marries him and never goes back to Egypt or the man she left behind. Fifteen years later, when Dawn is in a plane crash (no spoilers: this all occurs at at the beginning of the book) and facing possible death, it is not her husband she thinks of but her previous love Wyatt.

The book then follows Dawn in her two lives: one at home in Boston with her husband and child, and her lost past life in Egypt, where she returns to see Wyatt and the life she left behind as an Egyptologist and excavator of Egyptian tombs. Dawn is two different people with the different men (Wyatt even has a different name for her) and she must choose one life, one man, and one person she wants to be going forward. The idea of the two possible lives is based on an ancient Egyptian text, The Book of Two Ways. I was fascinated by all the Egyptology in this book, the hieroglyphics, and the way the excavation of the tomb is used as a beautiful metaphor. There was definitely NOT too much Egyptology in this book for me - but then, I have always been interested in Egypt and as a little girl I made my parents take me to see King Tut. This book renewed my interest and I did some heavy Googling to find out if the mummy king was real (fictional, but based on another real king) and the text of the Book of Two Ways was real (very real).

This is a dense book with a lot of information (even some quantum physics!) and it will take a significant investment of your time and heart, but the rewards are great. It sounds wild, but somehow Jodi Picoult always makes me feel like I have learned something huge about life, and I leave her books feeling enlightened. In this case, the book had a lot of pretty deep things to say about life and death, and the unfinished things we feel we need to do or see before we die.. It was also beautifully validating of the fact that we all have paths in our lives that we did not take that perhaps we will always wonder about. The structure of the book and the several big reveals are just beautifully executed. I have some mixed feelings about the ending but it was lovely and fitting.

Thanks to NetGalley, Jodi Picoult and Ballantine Books for the advance copy of this transcendent book in exchange for my honest review.