Lone Wolf

by Jodi Picoult

Picoult has written yet another of her signature formulaic novels. It has all of the elements: several points of view, a sticky conflict, and a plot twist near the end.

Briefly, Luke Warren has sustained a traumatic brain injury in a car crash. His daughter, Cara, survived the accident with much milder injuries. Luke’s son, Edward, has flown back home from Thailand, just to see his father before it’s too late.

Conflict arises when Edward is ready to “pull the plug,” and Cara wants to keep her non-responsive father alive. What is Edward’s motivation? What is Cara’s motivation? And just what is the right thing to do?

Oh, and there’s this whole wolf thing, too. Before his accident, Luke was a man who lived with wolves. I have to say that the wolf theme is the least interesting element of this novel. I started skimming the Luke/wolf parts. Bor-ing!

This is a super-fast read for fans of Picoult. Even though she breaks no new ground with this novel, her writing is always entertaining.

4/18/12