I already finished my novel for the month of March so I am able to post another novel review already! Hopefully this means I can get a second book in before the end of the month! The book I just completed reading was Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult. This book was definitely a quick read, as all her books are, and I blew through it in a couple of days. I'm going to give it a 3.5 out of 5 rating since it kept my attention and had the normal twists and turns that she always includes, but was not quite as good as some of her previous novels.
I almost want to assume that anyone reading this review has read a Jodi Picoult book before, or maybe I should say every female? Her books tend to be extremely popular with the female audience ranging from about age 14 and up. Her books all seem to be New York Times bestsellers, rightfully so in my opinion, because they are quick and interesting to read. Some of her more famous titles include: My Sister's Keeper, 19 Minutes, and The Pact (my personal favorite--a reverse Romeo and Juliet). My Sister's Keeper was even turned into a movie featuring Cameron Diaz, but the movie BUTCHERED the book and didn't even keep the original ending. Overall, she is an author with many titles, that consistently turns out a quality product. Even if you don't end up reading this book, I highly suggest checking out some of her other titles.
The Lone Wolf is a novel that follows several characters thoughts and actions surrounding a car crash that has left a father of two, Luke, in a coma. The book shows the perspective of both of his kids, Luke from the past, the ex-wife and mother, the stepfather/lawyer, and a couple of other select characters. The main moral dilemma of the novel is what to do about Luke: should he be taken off of life support and have his organs donated, or should he be kept alive in the hopes that he will one day recover. The daughter that currently lives with him wants to keep him alive, and his estranged son, who has returned from Thailand after the accident, wants to let him slip peacefully away. Luke is a wolf lover and wilderness expert, and has even lived in the Canadian wilderness as a member of a wolf pack, making it a clear choice to many that he would not want to wake up in the condition that he would most likely be in, if he ever was to wake up. His daughter is harboring a secret that keeps her desperately holding on (plus her obvious love of her father) and the estranged son also holds his own secrets, and a possible vengeance for his father's former sins against him.
Showing the novel from the various character perspectives is always a favorite writing technique of mine. I think it keeps the reading fresher, and allows the reader to see all points of view. I will say that I was not as involved with these characters as I have been with some of her former works. This story also involves a teenager taking out a law suit on a family member (My Sister's Keeper anyone?) and I found the characters to be less desirable and connectable than previous works. Also the "secret twists" that they were hiding were not quite as scandalous or interesting as some of the ones that Mrs. Picoult has provided in the past.
I did enjoy all of the wolf information that was provided. The author definitely always does her research before writing any novel. I'm an avid animal lover, so I enjoyed learning more about wild wolves.
Overall, I enjoyed the book and thought it was entertaining. I don't think its quite up to par to some of her previous works, but I imagine it would be hard to consistently come up with totally different plot lines and characters every year. Definitely worth a read if you enjoy her books (or even if you haven't read them before) and are looking for a quick, easy read.
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