Author: Mandy Hubbard
Page Count: 284 pages
Summary: Kayla McHenry’s sweet sixteen sucks! Her dad left, her grades dropped, and her BFF is dating the boy Kayla’s secretly loved for years. Blowing out her candles, Kayla thinks: I wish my birthday wishes actually came true. Because they never freakin’ do.
Kayla wakes the next day to a life-sized, bright pink My Little Pony outside her window. Then a year’s supply of gumballs arrives. A boy named Ken with a disturbing resemblance to the doll of the same name stalks her. As the ghosts of Kayla’s wishes-past appear, they take her on a wild ride . . . but they MUST STOP. Because when she was fifteen? She wished Ben Mackenzie would kiss her. And Ben is her best friend’s boyfriend.
Review: I haven't read Prada & Prejudice yet, so this was the first thing I'd read by Mandy Hubbard! I've been following her blog and twitter for awhile, so I was super excited when I saw this book in the store. I got it right before I left for college and it took me less than two days to finish.
What I Liked:
- Ben. Ben was super dreamy, guys. He was adorable and did motocross and was sweet and laughed at Ken and generally - all he did was be amazing. He made me swoon and this is hard to get me to do over a character.
- The wishes! This shouldn't count as a spoiler, but - Kayla's Raggedy Ann doll turns into a real person and she is super entertaining! Kayla's a total loner at the beginning of the book, but the main plot point - the wishes - really turned her life around! Her character development was totally spot on because of these things and she becomes a better person because of it.
- Super Loner Girl? One of my professors talks circles around why it's dumb that you should feel you have to relate to characters, but I think it just enhances the story - I love to relate! And relate to Kayla I did. She made fun of popular girls, had twenty different pairs of Converse shoes, and was totally fine being a loner. And I'm totally like that, guys. But she realizes - spoiler alert! - that being a loner is usually self-made. It's not like she was just a freak. She just used that to cope. WHICH I CAN SO RELATE TO.
What I Didn't Like:
- Cheesy? Maybe a little. The premise itself sounds like a Disney movie, as my friend Tom so eloquently put to me. And it does. The writing isn't intense or literary, which I don't think was the author's purpose. Maybe what I'm trying to say is: It was a little too light and fluffy, candy for the brain. But that isn't necessarily a bad thing!
Overall, I enjoyed You Wish a lot. It had great characters and character development, some really funny moments, and some very witty prose at times. If you're looking for an intense read, though, this really isn't it! But that doesn't detract - it was still lots of fun!
Romance: 4/5 stars
Overall: 4/5 stars
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