‘Lone Wolf’ by Jodi Picoult

Picoult has always been one of my favourite authors, I’ve almost read all she’s ever written. Her popularity has grown steadily and her books are translated into many languages. I just heard her speak in London at the BBC and she packed a large auditorium with fans. She spoke very well and obviously loves what she does.

As always, Picoult did her research well on the three issues of this book:  wolf behaviour, organ donation, and end of life issues. However, as a novel I found this one fell a bit flat and seemed formulaic. All of her books include multiple narrators, tricky family relationships, a tragedy, a few twists and turns, some medicine and a court case. There is usually the hope of a miracle involved and some questions which are left unanswered until the very end. All of this usually makes for an enjoyable read, especially because she weaves a provocative topic into this formula and that makes each book a little different. ‘Lone Wolf’ for me was a bit cliché and not nearly as creative as some of her earlier novels, despite the interesting insight into wolf behaviour.

I am really looking forward to her latest novel which has just come out called ‘Between the Lines’ which is a young adult novel and was co-authored with her daughter Samantha Van Leer.