This book took my heart, surprised my mind, and nourished my soul! Diana is an up-and-coming art specialist at Sotheby's with a life-plan all mapped out, She lives with Finn, her surgical resident boyfriend, misses her dead father and has very mixed feelings about her mother with early onset Alzheimer's. In March of 2020, Diana and Finn are set to go on a dream vacation to the Galapagos Islands, Finn cannot leave the hospital, but urges Diana to go on her own.. Diana gets stranded on the island and meets a family that makes her question all that she knows to be true. The pandemic is raging in NYC, and her communication with Finn is spotty. Diana wakes up literally and figuratively, and decides to live her life without a net.

I was provided an Advanced Reader Copy of Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult from NetGalley. The book is scheduled to be released on November 30, 2021. Wish You Were Here begins in March 2020, right as the corona virus is hitting the US. Diana, an art specialist, and her boyfriend Finn, a NYC physician, are about to leave for a vacation in the Galapagos, but Finn is not able to go due to work demands because of the virus. Diana goes alone, and she ends up stranded on the island, without her luggage, much money, no hotel due to the shutdown, and with limited wi-fi. Diana befriends a young girl and her family, and Diana thrives while staying on the island. This is a great story with beautiful descriptions, but, since it is a Jodi Picoult book, something totally unforeseen and shocking happens, and the story completely changes.
Wish You Were Here is my favorite read of 2021, and it will stay with me for a long time. I can hardly wait until the book is released so I can talk about it with someone! Jodi Picoult, once again, has written a five-star, must read book! Thank you, NetGalley, for allowing me to read it early.

Though we're still in the thick of the pandemic, this book brought me right back to the beginning. Something I always enjoy about Jodi Picoult's books is the amount of research she puts in to any topic she writes about. Wish You Were Here is no exception. Relating both to Covid-19 and the protagonist's experiences, the research is clear and helps move the story forward. I enjoyed reading about Diana's experiences in the Galapogos and what it might have been like to be there during the pandemic. Jodi Picoult's books are often relatable, but it was an interesting experience to read about something I've lived through the lens of fiction. As always with Jodi Picoult, the book takes you on some unexpected twists and turns.

I really, really enjoyed this book. It was different than what I expected and definitely took a turn around the middle that completely surprised me. I won't say much about the plot since it could give a lot away. It is a book about the choices we make in life and the timing is at the start of the pandemic of 2020. You can tell the author did a fair amount of research on the pandemic and the impact it had on people.

Wish You Were Here is the latest novel by Jodi Picult; a romance with a twist. Diana and Finn are in love and living their lives according to their plan. They were getting ready to depart on the vacation of a lifetime to the Galapagos Islands where Diana is convinced that Finn will be proposing. Almost overnight, Covid hits the United States and Finn, a surgeon, is forced to work almost non-stop caring for patients in the ICU. Their vacation is non-refundable so he suggests that Diana go alone. While upset, Diana leaves for Isabela Island which she quickly discovers is closing for two weeks due to Covid fears. She decides to stay and since everything on the island is closed, she is fortunate to be taken in by Abuela. Soon after she meets Abuela's son Gabriel and his daughter Beatriz. While there, Diana becomes conflicted when thinking about her life back home with Finn.

I absolutely loved this book, I truly did. Unfortunately, I nearly put it down within the first few pages. We are introduced to Sam and Kotomi early on and there are so many parallels to John Lennon and Yoko Ono that I nearly stopped reading the book at that point. They are not main characters in the story, but every time they were mentioned, I cringed. Maybe it is that I am a Beatles fan and vividly remember when I found out that John Lennon had been killed.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Never thought I'd be reading a book which felt so real and timely. I was pulled into this book from the beginning as it relates to real time over the past 2 years and all the events which have taken place. Covid has affected everyone in the world and to read something from another's perspective makes it all that more real. Diana and Finns story was heartwarming but heartbreaking at the same time. Everyone has to make choices during rough times and seeing what Diana chose again was something we can all feel and relate. Another great story from Jodi Picoult!

This might be the best book I've read this year. Incredibly timely, the novel is set at the beginning of the pandemic. Diana O'Toole and her boyfriend Finn have booked a dream vacation to the Galápagos. Their flight is set to depart on March 14, 2020. Finn is a surgical resident and when the pandemic breaks, he's forced to stay in New York and work. At his urging, Diana takes the trip solo. We all know what happened around the world over the next few days, and by the time Diana arrives in Galápagos, she's met with spotty WiFi and a closed hotel, and she's missing her luggage. She's taken in by a local family, who takes her to see the island, and Diana begins forming a bond with a troubled teen-- and her dad. 

I was entranced by the sense of escapism provided by this book alongside the very real reality of a deadly pandemic. There is a surprise twist in this book that I don't want to give away, so you just have to buy the book, mask up, and dive in for yourself!

I doubt I’m alone in feeling a strong sense of pandemic fatigue after nearly two years of living through the nightmare of COVID-19. With continuous daily reminders and a still-climbing death toll, the last thing I’m interested in doing during my downtime is reading a book about the freaking pandemic! So why did I read this? Well, the publisher sent me an e-mail and I must not have read the full synopsis. I was curious to read a new Jodi Picoult novel, as there was a time in my early teens that I went through a Jodi Picoult phase, kickstarted by my love for My Sister’s Keeper. My mom and I spent hours together reading, discussing, and re-reading it, so there’s a real nostalgia factor here. In the intervening years, after I’d moved onto Serious Literature (TM), there were a few Picoults that caught my eye, but I was reticent to go back to that well for risk of tainting it by realizing the magic was gone, or that it had never existed in the first place (here’s looking at you, Dan Brown ;)
This long-winded intro is all to say: the deck was stacked against me liking this book. And yet, I really enjoyed it! Picoult surprisingly lives up to the fanfare, and to my monolithic memories. Her writing is beautiful and heartfelt without being gratuitous or overly sentimental, and that twist! Wow. She really is the queen of twists, brilliantly co-opting that hallmark of the mystery/thriller and applying it to drama, heightening the emotion and keeping the story from puttering out halfway through. Yet such is her talent that it feels earned rather than gimmicky, even when this particular twist she employs is almost universally denounced as a cop out. I don’t want to ruin the surprise, though I think the mechanics and prowess are worthy of reading regardless of whether you know in advance what will happen. Kudos to Picoult, and I eagerly await her next release.

Thank you Netgalley for a chance to read and review this ARC. I’m a longtime fan of Jodi Picoult. The first half of this book was just ok for me. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read about COVID while still living it. The characters and events were interesting, but I missed that hook. Then it hit! I’m very happy I didn’t give up on this book! Thought provoking , page turning and a perfect ending.

“Wish You Were Here”

March 2020:

Diana has a nearly perfect life, everything is going as she has planned. She’s close to a promotion, and she’s going on a dream vacation to the Galápagos Islands with her boyfriend, and she’s sure that he’s going to propose during the trip. What she doesn’t realize is how drastically the world is about to change.

Covid comes crashing down on everything. Her boyfriend is a resident surgeon and is fearing the worst. So before the worst hits, Finn encourages her to go on that dream vacation alone. He will stay behind and work the front lines. Neither one of them know how bad the pandemic is going to get, the whole world is about to change in ways nobody would ever imagine.

Diana is almost immediately stranded as soon as her dream vacation starts when the island is shut down. Her luggage is lost, she has almost no money because there are no ATMs. She’s one of the few people remaining because almost everyone else has evacuated. She doesn’t even speak Spanish. With nowhere to go, and nothing except for the contents of a backpack, she relies on the kindness of a loving local woman whom she can barely communicate with. She soon forms a close relationship with a local man and his daughter.

During this time, she is forced to just be. Two weeks turn into three, then four, and so on. Here she is free of the hustle and bustle of her life in the city. There’s nothing but time here. She is unable to fully communicate with Finn, but when she can, she’s realizing just how bad things are all over New York, and everywhere else in the world. When there’s nothing but time, she’s able to reexamine her life and the choices she’s made. Maybe she’s exactly where she’s supposed to be, and with the people she’s supposed to be with.

She realizes that could be a second chance, so what happens now? How many times in life do you get a second chance and just what will you do with it?

To say anything else would be spoiling this book. This is such a beautiful and emotional story. One should always be grateful for what we have, and this book reminds you to do that. The pandemic has taught us all just how fragile life really is. You’ll need tissues for this one.

Thank you to Jodi Piccoult for recognizing the pandemic heroes in this story.

I am extremely grateful to Jodi Piccoult, Ballentine Books, and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I’m really having a love hate with Ms Picoult lately. First Book of Two Ways and now this.

The beginning really grabs you. It starts with “only 19 cases of COVID” in NY City. Nice foreshadowing considering the reader knows what lies ahead. It was like, ok, I see what you’re doing here Jodi.

But then comes Part 2. Noooooo. Come on!! Dirty trick and I didn’t like it. I almost stopped reading just from being annoyed. But I plowed through and I’m glad I did.

And true to form, Picoult made me shed a couple tears. Sheesh. But then by the last few sentences, I’m mad at her again. Sigh.

I loved this quote, though.
“Busy is just a euphemism for being so focused on what you don’t have that you never notice what you do. It’s a defense mechanism. Because if you stop hustling—if you pause—you start wondering why you ever wanted all those things in the first place.”

Overall, I loved certain parts and felt frustrated by others. Worth reading but don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I am a lifelong Jodi Picoult fan. I read everything she writes no matter the topic. I have to admit, I was hesitant about this book being about COVID while we are still dealing with COVID. I do think that if you've had a loss due to COVID or are dealing with long-haul symptoms, this book might be too soon for you. That being said, it is wonderfully raw and honest and well written as always. Parts of this book were hard to read emotionally, but that's what Jodi Picoult does best. She gets right to the heart of things and lays them bare. I'm glad that I took the leap to read this now and not wait until COVID is over. Thank you Jodi Picoult for another amazing gut-wrenching novel. I received a free copy of this book from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this well-researched book that described life during Covid through fiction. The author ensured accuracy by doing much research on the topics covered. This book is a tribute to the resilience of people who lived through “the world coming to a pause” during 2020 and beyond.

Bookcrazytasha on Instagram

Review is posted on Instagram & Goodreads
https://instagram.com/bookcrazytasha?utm_medium=copy_link

⭐⭐⭐ 3.5/5
Thank you to the publisher for sending me this ARC via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

This book sucked me in immediately. I loved all the characters, and they're layers. I thought the covid reality checks from the perspective of an NYC Doctor throughout the book were well done. However when we got to the "twist" I found myself suddenly annoyed. It's difficult to explain without offering spoilers. But I felt like I lost "something" that was essentially what I was enjoying reading for, if that makes sense 🤷‍♀️ Perhaps if we were given a bit more at the end I may had been able to reconcile it. I still enjoyed the book, and loved the story.

Wow! I was unprepared for the powerfulness of this book! Jodi Picoult has written of life during the pandemic and it is riveting. I actually yelled out loud at the point of extreme surprise in this book.I never saw it coming! It is absolutely wonderful. I read it on one day.

Oh where do I begin with this perfectly beautiful book!? It was everything I want in a novel. Diana goes on a trip alone to the Galápagos Islands, to avoid losing the money she and her boyfriend spent on the vacation of a lifetime. Finn stays home in New York just as covid hits because he is a doctor and is needed at the hospital. He thinks Diana will be out of harms way while there. The trip gets off to a rocky start, first Diana's luggage is lost, there is no wifi, cell phone connections are almost non-existent and the entire island is going into lockdown. Luckily Diana meets Abdula, her son Gabriel and her granddaughter Beatriz. They help her with food, shelter, companionship and how to navigate the island. One day she and Gabriel go snorkeling and Diana believes she is going to drown...that's where the real story begins.

This book read like non-fiction which is understandable seeing as Ms. Picoult based it on a man who got stuck in the Galápagos Islands during lock-down and of course covid being very real these days. The storyline was so heartbreaking and raw and real, while reading these pages I felt so many emotions and loved getting a doctors point of view on covid. This will definitely be one of my favourite reads of the year. I finished it days ago and it is still with me, it is one I won't soon forget, that's for sure. I highly recommend this read to everyone. All. The. Stars.

I’m generally a big Jodi Picoult fan and have read many of her books but this isn’t among my favorites. It’s written with great skill but it might be a bit premature to write about the COVID-19 pandemic since we’re still living it. Diana has the ‘perfect’ life as an art expert working for Sotheby’s and living with her devoted partner, Finn, a surgical resident. They’ve planned the ‘perfect’ vacation, going to the Galapagos Islands but a virus precludes Finn from going and he encourages Diana to go on her own and she decides to do so. In kind of a predictable way, Diana meets a grumpy tour guide and his troubled and confused daughter. So begins Diana coming to the rescue and finding herself. The descriptions of the Galapagos are very accurate and give a wonderful picture of a truly amazing place. But COVID-19 changes and interrupts everything and the second half of the book provides a totally different picture of the world as it has become. The characters were not as multi-dimensional as I’ve come to expect from Picoult. Diana was self-centered, Finn a bit too sweet and forgiving. The twist in the story was amazingly effective, a real gotcha moment. Fans of Jodi Picoult are probably going to love this book. I felt Picoult took bits and pieces and mixed them together to quickly write a book about an au current topic. Thanks to NetGalley and Balantine Books for the free ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review.

Wow, what a story!! I started off reading this book solely because it is written by one of my most favourite author. I was absolutely thrilled when I was approved for the ARC on Netgalley. Apart from the vague knowledge that it is based during the pandemic, I went in blind, not knowing the story line at all. I must admit there was a point when I was beginning to wonder whether it's more a romance novel, and then, just like that, wham!! The plot twist turns the story on its head.

Diane O'Toole and her boyfriend, Dr. Finn Colson are living it up in New York City, both successful professionals, with their whole life plan chalked out. They are about to embark on a holiday together to the Galápagos Islands, where Diane expects that Finn will propose to her, when the Covid pandemic breaks out and Finn's leave is cancelled. Finn urges Diane to go on the vacation without him. You have to read the book to find out what happens next..

This novel shows how for some people the pandemic has been a dream come true (those remotely working from exotic locales surrounded by loved ones) and for others, their worst nightmare (the medical community or those who have lost a dear one to Covid). For almost everyone, it has upended their best laid plans. It has been a wake up call as also an opportunity to pause our rush-about lives and think about what is really important at the end of the day.

I am really thankful to the author for documenting the pandemic so thoroughly with experiences of the people who lived it, in great detail. The general world media has always sought to pick and choose depending which way the political wind blows. Somebody had to tell the real story.

The book comes out on 30th November, 2021. Thank you NetGalley and Ballantinebooks for the advance copy.

Another good one - just when you think you know where the story is going....wham, she throws you a curve. And this one is good!
Diana and her boyfriend, Finn, have a plan. She is working at Sotheby's and he is surgical resident. They have a trip to the Galapagos Islands and are set to leave the day after tomorrow. It is March 19, 2020. The next morning, COVID hits and all hell breaks loose.
Authors note in the back answers a lot of questions I had - so take a look after you read the story.

This is the first book that I’ve read that really dove into life during the pandemic and wow, was it gut wrenching. I don’t want to spoil any of the story so I won’t rehash it but wow, what a page turner. I literally could not put it down and finished in a day. Jodi Picoult never disappoints.