Wish You Were Here

Picoult did a great job of capturing the fear and complete floundering we experienced during the beginning and worst of COVID. One scene in particular struck me as especially poignant and I was reminded of how difficult it was to sometimes have different stress levels in a relationship. But, I really kept feeling the entire time that it's too soon to release a book about the pandemic. 

I mostly enjoyed the storyline in the Galápagos, though it felt like a Hallmark movie and the way she wrote about Beatriz's self-injury felt pretty cringe, though I can't articulate why.

But then after the twist, I became increasingly more frustrated with Diana and the book became repetitive. I didn't understand what she wanted from people or what she was trying to accomplish when she kept insisting her time on the island was real. Like, how? Eventually an explanation was concocted but then it felt like a really unconvincing, woo attempt at sci-fi. Plus, so many paragraphs kept ending with, "He said this but if only he knew I thought that."I thought the ending was appropriate and am glad she ended the relationship with Finn. Real or not, her experience showed her that her heart was not in it anymore. The pandemic really did change so many things for us, even if we were privileged to stay healthy and employed. So, despite my grievances with a lot of the book, I do support the end.