Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

86 reviews

evelynritzi's review

hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

I love just about anything Jodie Picoult writes and this is no exception. She has a way of taking current issues and topics and examining them from such interesting POVs. I can’t believe how quickly she wrote this book and how well-researched it was.

And the TWIST! I almost threw the book across the room.

 

Highly recommended this one! 💜 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Death of parent, Pandemic/Epidemic, Dementia, and Self harm

jennipea382's review

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic, Dementia, Death of parent, Grief, Self harm, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Grief, Mental illness, Alcohol, and Sexual content

tiffanymmf's review

reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Medical trauma, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Death

mollylulu04's review

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Dementia, Medical trauma, Death, Medical content, and Death of parent

astoriareader's review

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

SYNOPSIS:

• It is March 2020. Diana finds herself alone in the Galápagos Islands, and she ends up being stuck there for an extended amount of time due to covid restrictions. Finn, her boyfriend and a surgical resident, is back home in New York City, and he is treating covid patients.
• Diana has always had a plan for her life, and with this unexpected bump in the road & time for new perspective, she re-evaluates her life & the direction it’s headed.

MY THOUGHTS

• Picoult is, as always, a great storyteller. This one has some unexpected turns, and I enjoyed the writing style. She also clearly researched all aspects of covid & incorporates in throughout the story.
• I went in blind with this book, and I didn’t actually realize it involved covid. For anyone with loved ones that passed from covid or triggers surrounding covid, this is one to skip.
• I was a little disappointed with the twist, but that is a personal preference.
• Overall, it’s a good book, but not my favorite one by Picoult.

TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2 stars. covid heavy in plot. story about figuring out what to do with your life.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Dementia, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Death of parent and Death

k83's review against another edition

funny reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

I miss the days of Picoult books being moral dilemmas. Mercy, The Pact, My Sisters Keeper, Keeping Faith.... This was very much fluff fiction, with a  tokenistic jump to mental health and lgb characters.  Maybe that's a reflection on publication decisions in a world of book banning, rather than picoults own choices.

Beatriz coming out is an non event, but there's no focus on her worries about it. Just her self harm, which is nothing more than a vehicle for Diana to be a saviour.   Similary Rodney is a walking stereotype, given no depth or development.  He exists only as comic relief from Finn's drama. His experience of lock down isn't described at all, when it would have made sense to at least skim over a "normal" experience rather than the beleaguered doctor and covid patient experience. He doesn't even express real concern for Diana's disappearance.

 

Doesn't actually chronical the covid-experiece at all.  It's an okay read, not one I'll reread.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Self harm, Death of parent, and Abandonment

stephmcoakley's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Classism, Death of parent, Dementia, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

abicaro17's review

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Diana is a complex and reflective character. Despite doing some choice things throughout the book, her reflection and inner turmoil creates a space to forgive some of her poor decisions. Given that this book basically reflects current and still changing events, it was well written and clearly well researched. It flows with facts and anecdotes from real life experiences. It was a beautiful (if not slightly triggering) book about a fictional person experiencing the trauma of current events. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Pandemic/Epidemic, Medical content, and Mental illness

Moderate: Confinement, Dementia, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Grief, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

wazowskismom's review

This book was very slow paced couldn’t hold my attention. I could push through in the first half because I loved the characters growth but after the twist I fell off hard. 

I enjoyed the twist but the reality is…we all lived through Covid and still are. I read to escape and this just further solidified the resentment and sadness I felt towards that time of craziness when the first strain hit. I just stopped being able to enjoy the book and even when I was enjoying it I was DRAGGING.

I think it’s possible the writing style, genre, and general plot all had part in making me put this book down for good.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Abandonment

krimor's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I didn't know this book had a COVID storyline and I'm glad I didn't know that. I wouldn't have read it then. No one wants to read about the pandemic or quarantine. We lived it. Yet somehow,  this book just changed my whole perspective on the pandemic. Quarantine gave us a new outlook on life. The pandemic changed our lives in many bad ways, but also good. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Pandemic/Epidemic