WISH YOU WERE HERE Paperback – 18 August 2022

My first read of 2023 and a fresh plot with a completely new and different twist.Left me wanting for more when the narration ended.A 5star rating from me.

"It’s not having the adventures or crossing off the line items of the bucket list. It’s who you were with, who will help you recall it when your memory fails."Diana is all set to fly to the Galápagos where she's convinced her surgeon boyfriend, Finn, is going to propose. But then the virus hits New York City and Finn is needed at the hospital so Diana travels alone.Once she's in the Galápagos, the world shuts down around her, leaving Diana stranded - albeit in paradise. Completely isolated, with only intermittent news from the outside world, Diana finds herself examining everything that has brought her to this point and wondering if there's a better way to live. But not everything is as it seems...Picoult makes Isabela Island come alive with her vivid descriptions. It was thrilling to imagine myself walking sandy beaches, befriending sea lions, and watching flamingos on a quiet, tourist-free vacation.Diana and Finn’s separation paints the ugly truth of the havoc Covid has played on families and loved ones. Finn's life in the hospital encapsulates the spirit and tenacity with which frontline medical workers continue to fight against this horrible virus.The story breaks off into part two with a turn so frightening it knocks the air out of your lungs. I fear even the tiniest detail I reveal may be a spoiler so I'll stop here.Reading this may bring you to relive some of the hardest moments of your life in the past two years. Yet, I find that Picoult has used this event and spun a story that is completely believable and yet so incredibly surprising. The pain is visceral but she shows there is always hope and in the end that is all that matters.This ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton.For complete review, visit aquamarineflavours.wordpress.com

The first half of the book is so interesting. And then comes a twist which... is unforgivable. Without giving away spoilers, let's just say it's one of those things no writer should ever do.