When I first began reading this book, I thought Sam was going to be this hippy, happy-go-lucky, quirky character. I also thought she surely had the worst experience with Duncan which would explain why she had so many negative thoughts of him being the new principal. As I got to know these characters, I began to understand the stories behind their personalities and outlooks on life. This gave me a great lesson in choosing joy... not necessarily the Marie Kondo style of decluttering, but of breaking free of the shackles of society expectations and opinions as well as thinking joy to manifest it in your life. It was also a good lesson in not letting life circumstances dictate the way you live your life. Not saying that safety and caution should be tossed at the wind, but taking control of the things you can and letting go of what you can't will go a long way in living a happy life.

Cute and charming, but didn't grip me as much as her earlier books. Would totally be annoyed by the main character's "not like other girls" attitude in real life.

Katherine Center has become one of my instant buys for the library that I work at as well as my own personal library. What You Wish For is a book that you that you simply cannot put down until the last page. It is the perfect book to read during these trying times.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This light romance - Samantha is a librarian and Decan is the new school principal. They knew each other in the past and Samantha had a crush on him and she ran away to a small town. Decan has now become the principal at the school she works at.

This is a sweet, and light read.

I really couldn’t get into this book. At almost 40% , I’m still trying to figure out where the plot is going, and what the story is about. The female lead (I can’t call her a heroine), Sam, feels too self-centered and emotionally immature. She’s stuck in what life was like five years ago, when she was ‘invisible’, and doesn’t understand why the ‘hero’ Duncan, who didn’t see her then, doesn’t recognize her now. She is just not someone I can like or empathize with. The plot isn’t developing into any sort of compelling story that encourages me to keep with it. I read ahead to 85%, and other than a big suspense scene, the characters haven’t changed. It not worth forcing myself to finish. I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. This is my freely given, honest review.

This was a really nice read during this hard time. I am a huge Kathrine Center fan. Although this was not my favorite of her books, Katherine Center is a gifted writer. The main characters, Sam and Duncan, both have a hard time trusting and letting people in close. Both characters learn to accept who they are and how to conquer their biggest fears. I loved the emotion this story invokes. If you want to feel uplifted, this is a must read.

I loved this book!! Great story!! The dog was funny!! Read a few books by this author will read more of her books!!

I got to have a unique experience in reading this book as I read part of it and listened to part of it on audiobook format thanks to the new Audiobook feature on Netgalley! I think I enjoyed that experience more than I liked th book itself because I was able to form the characters in my head when I first started reading it on my Kindle and then the beautiful narration on the audio brought some of the characters into sharper relief.

If you have read any of Katherine Center’s books before (see my previous review of Things You Save In A Fire), you know that she is excellent at writing female lead characters that have deep stories and emotional ties and traumas that make them incredibly interesting. Samantha is no exception and her quirky personality is evident through every awkward interaction with Duncan throughout the book. I liked seeing both of those characters evolve throughout the story as we dug deeper into the personality changes that both of them had between their last meeting and their new relationship.

So why the three star rating (I waivered between 3 and 4 for awhile)? Honestly, a lot of the relationship seemed unbelievable. The author wants us to believe that there was a burning ember in Duncan that reignited but I honestly didn’t feel any kind of organic spark between them. I could totally see this playing out as a movie (socially awkward librarian gets staunchy principal to open up) but something in the middle got muddy for me.

Overall, this was a fun read. You could call it a light hearted/beach read/chick lit type of book so it came in at the right time for me when the world was pretty bogged down inside itself so I am grateful to have had the levity this book provided.

Thank you Netgalley, St Martins Press Publishing, and the Author for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed Things You Save in a Fire, so I thought I’d try Center’s newest novel, and I loved it! Like most books I’ve read lately, I started out skeptical that I would enjoy it but ended up devouring it in a little over 24 hours. I may have even shed a tear or two at the end. I was really drawn to the book because the main character, Samantha, is a librarian like myself. I love when she describes what other people think being a librarian is: “I’m always astonished at the number of people who think I just “hang out” in the library all day. Not to mention the number who think all I do is read.” And then she goes on to describe that being a librarian is more work than people think! Anyway, Samantha is a school librarian and when the principal of her school unexpectedly passes away, his replacement turns out to be a man that Samantha knew from her last school, and had a crush on. But Duncan’s not the same guy she knew four years ago. Some of the book was a bit predictable and unrealistic (she is going to quit a job she loves because her old crush is now working there?) but overall I found it really uplifting and heartwarming. I thought this line summed the theme of the book up nicely: “We made a choice to do joy on purpose. Not in spite of life’s sorrows. But because of them.”

I have read two other books by Katherine Center and I loved them both, but this one was a bit of a disappointment.

Like her other books, I loved the writing style, this book just seemed like more fluff than substance to me than her previous works. The second half of the book really picked up and made it an enjoyable read overall, but the first half was much more chick lit like than I was expecting.

Overall i thought the book was good and I will keep reading this author. I just enjoy her other books much more.

This is honestly a tough book to review for me. Not really because of content (although this book is about a tough subject, especially for parents and those who work in education), but because I love the author so much. Katherine Center fast became a top author for me, I devoured all of her previous books rating them strong 5-stars. This one was okay, it really missed the mark for me. My biggest issue is within the first third of the book. It drags, it's overly repetitive and paints Sam to be a little on the crazy, stalker side. I had a hard time seeing how this was going to develop into a good storyline that wasn't overly sappy. After that initial third, the book does come together and picks up the pace. You see all the puzzle pieces fall together and it does turn into a lovely story. The ending is predicable from the minute Duncan enters the story.

Overall it is a cute romance and Center very delicately showcases some harsh realities about school shootings. I don't feel this is her strongest book. And if this is the first book of hers you read, please give her other books a try. She is an incredible writer, that just doesn't come through as strongly in this novel. I will still be first in line to read whatever she comes out with next and I would still recommend her books.

My thanks to Katherine Center, St. Martin's Press and netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a huge Katherine Center fan, so this book was just another 5 star read for me. She is so talented when it comes to bringing characters to life, and making you feel connected to them. Sam and Duncan broke my heart and put it back together. Sam is so very damaged by her past, unaware that she's not the only one. Duncan's experience in the school shooting and the injuries he sustained while protecting the kids made me ugly cry like no other. By the time the search party happened towards the end of the book, I didn't think I'd have any tears left to cry. I can't say enough about this book, the author, or any of her other works. I just wish she'd write faster because I need a new story!

I was expecting a lot more out of this book after all the hype I had seen everywhere, but it definitely didn’t live up to the hype. I got a little over half way through and just couldn’t push further anymore. I found the characters a bit annoying, Sam was stuck in the past and couldn’t see what was right in front of her. I felt all she did was complain or whine about her life and the people in it. And Duncan was a bit unrealistic coming into a school like he did and making so many dramatic changes. I guess what I’m trying to say is, I just didn’t feel any sort of connection with these characters and they weren’t real like-able either.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author, I am going to try another one and hope for a better outcome.

What you Wish For is the new release by the amazing author Katharine Center, who brought us How To Walk Away and Things You Save In a Fire. While Katharine has captivated me as a reader with her character and gripping emotional reads that are easily relatable.... this one was not quite on par. I have delayed writing my review to give myself a little space to sort my reaction but in the end I just can not get to a point where I feel like I was invested in this story or even just in Sam the main character. She did have her moments - when she has been cooking, has not showered and is not even sure she has brushed her hair when she runs into her former crush who is coincidentally her new boss as principal of the school, but in the long haul the connection was not there. I am chalking this up to a near miss for me and looking forward to this author’s next book, which I am sure I will love once again. I received an ARC if this novel, all opinions are my own.

Delightful, charming, exactly what I needed right now! I love these characters that just seem to stay with you long after reading! Just delightful.

Yes, this is an easy book to read. I struggle with the unbelievable-ness of it all.

Maybe it was not being able to relate to one single character, despite working at a school for over a decade. This is for me a beach-y read, despite having "heavier' subtext.

Oh, Katherine Center. With #whatyouwishfor I was looking for an escape. Somewhere to forget all the crazy twisty things that happen in all of the thrillers I read. I loooove thrillers but every once in awhile I need my own page-break.
And you delivered... I absolutely loved this Admire-to-hate-to-Adore love story. It was twisty enough to keep my heart racing and soft enough for me to catch a breath.
Thank you!
This is why I love authors, why I love books!

I love Katherine Center and have highly rated most of her backlist, but this one just didn't do it for me. It felt like it took SO long to get going in the beginning, and the plot felt a little too heavy handed. I look forward to hopefully loving her next book again whenever that may be!

I’ve tried reading this multiple times but it was very difficult for me. I may come back again later in the future, after I read some of Katherine Center’s other books.

I really loved Katherine Center's Things You Save in a Fire, so I was thrilled to see a new book coming out - but I think this led to a case of let-down from misplaced expectations. I was expecting something in the tone of the previous book of hers I had read, and I didn't get it with this book. This one has a very quirky main character, and playing up her personality just felt a bit over-the-top to me and it was a bit difficult to connect. Still, fans of Katherine Center will probably enjoy this one, but just know that the feel is a bit different.