The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult

A Contemporary, 2020 by Ballantine, 416 Pages

What I Didn’t Like:

Content warning: extramarital affairs, major accident. Jodi Picoult books are always full of things that make you question your own beliefs and face things that are major issues in our society. This one uses a serious accident to confront cheating, which can be a tough concept to feel connected to a character on.
Likely related, I didn’t particularly love the main character on this one. While I understand the reasoning behind the selfish behavior, I found it a little hard to fully enjoy her story because of her selfishness.
The alternating storylines take a little getting used to. They each suck you in but they seem almost off balance for a bit.

The daughter. The massive love I had for this girl was definitely the highlight of this book. She’s a flawed character, sure, but she’s also immensely relatable and easily the most loving character in the book. I adored her.
Egypt. I’m a fan of Egyptian mythology and ancient Egyptian culture. Careful, if you aren’t a fan this one is loaded with things that will likely make it to your own dislike list. But for me, this was a huge bonus. The accurate history, the interesting little liberties, and the exploration of tombs all kept me sucked into the story.
The ending. Remember what kind of endings I like and treat carefully if we’re different on this. I like endings that leave me thinking, endings that leave me dreaming about the characters and wondering what happened to them. Endings like this.

Egyptology fans who also find themselves enjoying a contemporary story.
Fans of stories where an adult is choosing between two paths, the one they have and the one they once walked away from.

Between Egyptology and cheating, this one will fall to a niche audience. But if you are the right reader, this one will be an absolute favorite. As always with Picoult, you can be sure it is well written, emotional, and will make you think.