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saara_ilona_muu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Pandemic/Epidemic
bre88's review against another edition
- 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
2.25
Graphic: Self harm, Medical content, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Bullying, Gun violence, Homophobia, Outing, and Colonisation
aysia_dukes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Moderate: Self harm and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Bullying and Dementia
bethsbookshelf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I was gripped at the start and again in the middle, but overall disappointed,
The character development felt lack-lustre to me. Finn was arguably the most interesting character and all we got from him was a couple of emails, a very short paragraph about his spiralling into alcoholism and a lot of Diana’s inner monologue about how horrible he was, only to never be shown that with any concrete facts.
The whole theme of needing human connection and how living in pandemic isolation is not natural for our species was nice, but again, not original. That’s all everyone has talked about online since the first lockdown. Again, reflects on Jodi’s white privilege a little bit again when other people were struggling to eat, find shelter, survive during Covid. I know that Diana’s storyline
Anyway, I feel like I read 350 pages of information just so Diana could have a very slight character arc that wasn’t really rooted in anything tangible or concrete. Jodi Picoult is one of my favourite others and a huge reason I’m a writer today. She even wrote me a wedding card! But this book missed the mark for me, sadly.
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Alcoholism and Alcohol
travelthrupages's review against another edition
- 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
3.25
Graphic: Confinement, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Abandonment
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Infidelity, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content
This is such an interesting book about COVID-19, surviving and realizing what life really should be about. I really enjoyed the parts where Diana is in the Galapagos. This part was so enjoyable. However, this isn't what it seems. During an almost life-ending emergency, Diana is no longer in the Galapagos, but back in NYC. COVID is rampant and she has been in the hospital for a few days with, nearly dying. She soon realizes that all the plans, the wants, the nonsense doesn't matter anymore. She goes on to change many things about her life because of her near-death experience. This is pretty powerful, but I felt like it was lacking a bit. Like I said before, the story in the Galapagos was very good. I just felt like the story was going to go in a totally different direction. The ending is OPEN-ENDED. Be warned. I looked at the last line for a few minutes before I read the author's notes (also pretty important information here so don't skip it). Thank you #Netgalley #RandomHouseBooks and #JodiPicoult for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my review!