Published by St. Martin's Publishing Group on July 14, 2020
Genres: Fiction, Women, Family Life, General
Pages: 320
Format: eBook
Source: ARC
"The story’s message, that people should choose joy even (and especially) in difficult and painful times, seems tailor-made for this moment. A timely, uplifting read about finding joy in the midst of tragedy, filled with quirky characters and comforting warmth."—Kirkus (starred review)From the New York Times bestselling author of How to Walk Away comes a stunning new novel full of heart and hope.
Samantha Casey is a school librarian who loves her job, the kids, and her school family with passion and joy for living.But she wasn’t always that way. Duncan Carpenter is the new school principal who lives by rules and regulations, guided by the knowledge that bad things can happen. But he wasn’t always that way.
And Sam knows it. Because she knew him before—at another school, in a different life. Back then, she loved him—but she was invisible. To him. To everyone. Even to herself. She escaped to a new school, a new job, a new chance at living. But when Duncan, of all people, gets hired as the new principal there, it feels like the best thing that could possibly happen to the school—and the worst thing that could possibly happen to Sam. Until the opposite turns out to be true. The lovable Duncan she’d known is now a suit-and-tie wearing, rule-enforcing tough guy so hell-bent on protecting the school that he’s willing to destroy it.
As the school community spirals into chaos, and danger from all corners looms large, Sam and Duncan must find their way to who they really are, what it means to be brave, and how to take a chance on love—which is the riskiest move of all.
With Katherine Center’s sparkling dialogue, unforgettable characters, heart, hope, and humanity, What You Wish For is the author at her most compelling best.
I was thrilled to have a chance to read an ARC of What You Wish For! I adored Things You Save in a Fire and I was absolutely ready to get swept away in Center’s story. The first 30% of the book laid a solid foundation for a great story. Samantha was lovable, relatable, and had a humorous internal monologue keeping readers entertained and engaged. One of the aspects of Center’s books that I find so appealing is the hopeful tone. Choosing to be joyful, or at least pursuing even the small things that bring you joy and comfort. Max, the late principal, had a number of quotes that I highlighted and intend to refer back to. We had some fantastic mental health representation along with disability rep in Samantha. The first 30% had me captivated, and then Duncan came on the scene.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed all the characters in this story. Even the snippy ones, they all felt like rounded, authentic individuals. I’m not sure where to classify this book. It seems like it is trying to straddle the line of contemporary fiction and romance and sort of loses its way. I was absolutely here for this romance between Duncan and Samantha. I wanted to watch Duncan’s character growth from the ground floor. The story zips through an entire school year in around 320 pages and that worked against their romance and growth. I want to be shown Duncan’s changes and the challenges, not told that he does them and it brings them closer together and now they are friends.
Ultimately, this definitely wasn’t my favorite but it was a solid start so I can’t rate it lower than a three. I will still absolutely read Center’s work in the future, but I needed Sam and Duncan’s interactions to be fleshed out a bit more.
CW: School Shootings, PTSD, Anxiety, Depression
**I voluntarily read and reviewed a review copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
About Katherine Center
Katherine Center’s new novel is WHAT YOU WISH FOR. She’s the author of eight novels, including How to Walk Away and Things You Save in a Fire—both instant New York Times bestsellers—as well as The Lost Husband (now a movie starring Josh Duhamel that just hit #1 on Netflix). She writes laugh-and-cry books about how life knocks us down—and how we get back up. Katherine has been compared to both Nora Ephron and Jane Austen, the Dallas Morning News calls her stories, “satisfying in the most soul-nourishing way,” and BookPage calls her the “reigning queen of comfort reads.” Her books have made countless Best-Of lists, including Real Simple’s Best Books of 2020, Amazon’s Top 100 Books of 2019, Goodreads’ Best Books of the Year, the Indie Next Great Reads List, BookList’s Top Ten Women’s Fiction, and many, many more. Katherine lives in her hometown of Houston, Texas, with her husband, two kids, and their fluffy-but-fierce dog.
