susanpevensie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mass/school shootings and Death
Minor: Vomit and Bullying
jenniferbbookdragon's review
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
A step above the romantic comedy and chick lit stories that have flooded bookstores and social media. Center explores family and friendship, trauma and healing, and how the stories we tell ourselves impact decisions in ways large and small.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Gun violence, Medical content, Death, and Chronic illness
Minor: Bullying, Abandonment, and Mass/school shootings
gondorgirl's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mass/school shootings and Death
Minor: Bullying, Grief, and Medical content
amy_sutt's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Beautiful story about a family of elementary school teachers, led by the librarian Samantha and how they recover from the loss of their beloved principal and founder Max to welcome a new principal Duncan and the less-welcome changes he tries to introduce to the school. Sam knew Duncan from when they worked together at another school in California and while she is initially excited about Duncan's appointment, thinking he is exactly what the school needs, the Duncan who arrives at the school is a much different man from the one that she used to know. When he starts changing the focus of the school from education and creativity to being a safe environment and introducing changes to the environment that the staff and faculty see as fundamentally changing who they are, Sam and her cohorts are left to fight and Sam is left to try and change Sam or at least understand what has happened to the person she used to know. She also has some growth over fear to do of her own as she struggles with her lifelong battle with epilepsy and how that has impacted close relationships in her life. This was a beautiful story with a slow burn relationship between Sam and Duncan with a lovely side relationship between Sam and her best friend Alice (I do love a good punny tshirt, even if it has to be a math pun) and Sam and Clay (one of her students). The love affair with the school library and the descriptions of it in the story made me wish I could go spend time there getting lost in a book!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mass/school shootings and Medical content
Minor: Bullying
the female main character has epilepsy and describes having grand mal seizures a couple of times in slightly graphic ways. She also describes the impact on her immediate family relationships and school relationships.Spoiler
the male main character was previously involved in a school shooting, which is revealed about 2/3 through the story and in the latter half he explains what happened and how it felt from his perspective, why he is so afraidreadwithria's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
What You Wish For is a book about growth, grief, and bravery. It takes itself as seriously as it needs to, but leaves room for levity and joy throughout.
I have yet to be disappointed by a Katherine Center book! This is my third book by her, and they’ve been consistently excellent. I think now that I have a grasp on how her balance of romance to non-romance, I have a decent idea of what to expect from her books. This book was exactly what I wanted it to be! It was funny, but sincere. It dealt with real-world issues in a way that felt approachable and authentic to the characters. Did I guess all of Duncan’s secrets? Yes. But this isn’t a mystery novel, so I have no problem with that.
I will say that I started with the audiobook, but enjoyed it a lot more once I switched to the physical book. I’m not sure if it was just me getting used to the voice of Sam, or that I didn’t vibe with the narrator, but I preferred the physical book.
The characters were great, the story was interesting, and the pacing kept me reading. 4 stars.
I have yet to be disappointed by a Katherine Center book! This is my third book by her, and they’ve been consistently excellent. I think now that I have a grasp on how her balance of romance to non-romance, I have a decent idea of what to expect from her books. This book was exactly what I wanted it to be! It was funny, but sincere. It dealt with real-world issues in a way that felt approachable and authentic to the characters. Did I guess all of Duncan’s secrets? Yes. But this isn’t a mystery novel, so I have no problem with that.
I will say that I started with the audiobook, but enjoyed it a lot more once I switched to the physical book. I’m not sure if it was just me getting used to the voice of Sam, or that I didn’t vibe with the narrator, but I preferred the physical book.
The characters were great, the story was interesting, and the pacing kept me reading. 4 stars.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, and Mass/school shootings
Minor: Bullying, Death of parent, Cursing, and Gun violence
sara_phoenix's review
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Samantha Casey is a school librarian that loves her home, loves her job, loves her friends, and loves her life. But when an former colleague, Duncan Carpenter, shows up to be the new school principal, everything she thought she knew is turned upside down. While I enjoyed the overall theme of the book that joy can still be found in the midst of difficult circumstances, I could not move past the fact that the main characters were very annoying. I finished the book hoping for some sort of redemptive quality in them to appear, but it never came, and the books conclusion was somewhat messy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Grief, and Death
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