Lone Wolf

Title: Lone Wolf
Author: Jodi Picoult
Labels: Fiction
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: February 28, 2012
Recommended To: YA, Adult
Contains: Foul language; 1 short, suggestive scene; topics of life and death.

Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository | Kindle
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Blurb From Goodreads: On an icy winter night, a terrible accident forces a family divided to come together and make a fateful decision. Cara, once protected by her father, Luke, is tormented by a secret that nobody knows. Her brother, Edward, has secrets of his own. He has kept them hidden, but now they may come to light, and if they do, Cara will be devastated. Their mother, Georgie, was never able to compete with her ex-husband’s obsessions, and now, his fate hangs in the balance and in the hands of her children. With conflicting motivations and emotions, what will this family decide? And will they be able to live with that decision, after the truth has been revealed? What happens when the hope that should sustain a family is the very thing tearing it apart?
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Lone Wolf is probably one of the most interesting fiction book I've read. Picoult has woven a story real, living, breathing characters. I'll be honest, I didn't think one could write a book from so many different character viewpoints, all of which are written in first person. However, this book is written in at least six different character viewpoints, and not once did I get lost along the way, not once did I forget who's viewpoint I was reading. Each character has their own distinct voice, their own distinct past, their own distinct reasons for why they do what they do. The way she weaves these viewpoints is absolutely brilliant.

My favorite character viewpoint was Luke. Ironic, really, because during the greater part of the book he is in a vegetative state. Rather, intermittently he would have a short chapter, in which he would tell of some past experience with the wolves he lived with, and how the pack operated, and his own personal feelings. These intervals came perfectly, because it would set the stage for the following chapters. As you read through the book, you come to realize that the things pointed out relate very much to the motives behind the other characters actions and words, driving the plot along.

I really can't say anything about the plot itself--other than the blurb--because it is so realistic, so complex that I honestly don't know what I could say without giving away part of it. You'll just have to read it for yourself. One thing I did not like, however, was the language used. The first fifty pages or so are clean as a whistle, then as the tensions in the plot pick up, so does the foul language. I ended up keeping a thin sharpie marker with the book so that when I ran across these words I could black them out, because honestly, I would have to have to chuck the book because the plot and characters are fantastic--but I can't have myself, others, or my siblings reading that kind of garbage. Other than that, I was very happy with this book.

I bought this book, and therefore was not required to write a review. These opinions are my own; I was not required to write a positive review, nor was I compensated for this review.