Good Reads Challenge Book Review: The Wishing Game
What’s up, “fam”..Welcome back to the blog.
“Sometimes the thing we want most in the world is the thing we’re most afraid of.” –Meg Shaffer
Hello friends, and how are you? I hope you are well, getting plenty of rest, staying hydrated, eating clean, focusing on your mental health, and giving yourself grace. Friends, as I write this post, I’m mourning the loss of my Dad. The passing of a loved one is not easy for anyone, and no, I’m not OK but processing. With the passage of time, I’ll remember him fondly, but right now, my blog is my lovely intermission.
The next book I’m reviewing is “The Wishing Game.” Part mystery, part fantasy, and some overall good fun. This brings my tally to 16 books read this year, and I’m moving through my list.
The Review
Title | The Wishing Game
Author(s) | Meg Shaffer
Format | Audible (Libby)
Pages/Hours | 304 pages, 10 hours
Published | May, 2023
Publisher | Ballentine Books
Genre | Fiction, Fantasy, Contemporary, Romance
GR Rating | 4.11
Purchase | Amazon
Storyline
Lucy Hart knows better than anyone what it’s like to grow up without parents who loved her. In a childhood marked by neglect and loneliness, Lucy found her solace in books, namely the Clock Island series by Jack Masterson. Now a twenty-six-year-old teacher’s aide, she is able to share her love of reading with bright, young students, especially seven-year-old Christopher Lamb, who was left orphaned after the tragic death of his parents. Lucy would give anything to adopt Christopher, but even the idea of becoming a family seems like an impossible dream without proper funds and stability.
My Rating (5.0 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
Quote from The Wishing Game
“Life can only be understood backward, but it must be lived forwards.”
What a delightful story and a break from the horror and thriller novels. Part mystery, part fantasy, this story is about the author of a beloved children’s series called Clock Island by the famed author Jack Masterson. His books gave life to a child’s imagination and created a world where wishes came true.
A riddle and a contest could be just what Lucy (our Protagonist) needs to turn her life around. As a teacher’s assistant, Lucy understands that the natural order of things in life is never quite fair to people who could benefit from it.
All Lucy needs is a little grace. She had been desperately trying to save up enough money to get a car and an apartment. She needs to show the state of California that she is a responsible adult who can afford to foster a child.
Quote from The Wishing Game
“ Hate is a knife without a handle. You can’t cut something with it without cutting yourself.”
Lucy has fallen head over heels for a little boy at her school named Christopher. Since his parents died, Lucy has been petitioning the system for temporary custody and bides her time by tutoring him in the afternoons.
Lucy introduced Christopher to the Clock Island books she loved as a child, and now, every day, they play the “Wishing Game,” where they each say what they most wish for. Lucy knows it would take a miracle on her salary, but a chance invitation would change everything.
Jack Masterson is having a contest where he has invited a select few to visit Clock Island for a chance to win a first-edition novel. This could easily solve Lucy’s problems because it just so happens that, as a child, she met a famous author. If Lucy wins, she will have enough money to foster Christopher and the chance to adopt him.
Quote from The Wishing Game
“Always be quiet when a heart is breaking.”
Revisiting Clock Island as an adult would set Lucy on a path that could go terribly wrong or make all her wishes into reality.
This is typically not in my wheelhouse as I’ll read the occasional fantasy but never romance. This book has one that anyone can see coming, which is why I don’t read them; they are so predictable.
Will Lucy win the contest? What will happen to Christopher if she fails, and how does Hugo, the illustrator of these beloved books, fit in …all is revealed in the end.
This story had me welling up at the end, as good endings do. Unconventional at best, this novel warmed my heart. It’s a great feel-good story.
Good Read Challenge Progress
What Moves the Dead (read)
Leslie F*cking Jones (read)
The Cousins (read)
September House (read)
The Echo Wife (read)
Her Lost Soul (ARC: read)
The Black Girl Survives This One (ARC: read)
The Bad Ones (ARC: read)
The Eleven (ARC: read)
The Black Guy Dies First: Black Horror Cinema from Fodder to Oscar (read)
Kill The Boy Band (read)
I Need You to Read This (read)
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide (read)
My Heart is a Chainsaw, Stephen Graham Jones (reading)
Mary: An Awakening of Terror, Nat Cassidy (reading)
For my full Good Reads Challenge list ..check out this post. For all the other posted reviews, check my page. For the review podcast, check out my Spotify.
Thanks so much for visiting the blog today. Don’t forget to follow and subscribe, as I appreciate the support. — Peace
I just read that book this past month and I too thought it was really cute and fun and definitely a feel good story.
I should read more like this but then a good mystery or thriller will cross my path and I just can’t resist.