Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

 

When bibliographies are compiled with titles of novels about the coronavirus pandemic, Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult will be on that list. While most Americans were “stranded” at home, Diana O’Toole embarked on a vacation alone to the Galápagos, and now she is stranded on an island as the world shuts down.

Worse, there is scanty means for correspondence, banking, accommodations, and supplies on the island. Because she is now no longer a tourist but “one of them,” a family takes her in to their home, where she slowly develops a relationship with a troubled teen, Beatriz. In this island paradise, Diana is soon swept off her feet by Gabriel, the teen’s father. Why is she suddenly becoming unfaithful to her boyfriend of four years, surgical resident Finn Colson, who is stuck in New York attempting to save lives? Will this tropical island become her home and her future? But then a near drowning changes everything.

As usual, Jodi Picoult’s latest tale is well researched and well written as readers have come to expect. This book is a mini lesson in the flora, fauna, and history of the setting.  Known for her O. Henry-like twist at the end of her novels, she does not wait that long in this one to turn the story upside down. Her notes at the end of the book are illuminating as to her experience during the start of the pandemic, telling readers how she came out of her writing paralysis. Picoult lives with her husband in New Hampshire.

My review will be posted on Goodreads starting October 8, 2021.

I would like to thank Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.