What You Wish For by Katerine Center is a stand-alone, romance novel, told in a single pov.
Meet Sam, she's a librarian, good woman and busy organizing a big party for her substitute parents when karma throws a wrench her way.
Her new boss is a former crush from her and she can't get him out of her head. Duncan Carpenter the new principal.
WYWF is a sweet story, well thought out and beautifully written and told. I liked the storyline and the characters, 4,5 stars.

I always look forward to Katherine Center’s newest book being published. Like her others, this one did not disappoint! What You Wish For is a contemporary-fiction novel about finding joy even in the most difficult situations. This is a theme Katherine often uses in her writing. As a school librarian,, I was excited to see that this book’s main character was also a school librarian. I loved the quirky characters, the beach setting, and the way she pulls you into her stories. The characters are so well-developed that you feel connected to them personally, and you experience all of their emotions. It’s the perfect “feel good” summer read! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this fantastic book.

I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I really didn't like this book. I've only read one other Katherine Center book (Things You Save in a Fire) and I thought it was pretty good; the type of book I enjoy after reading something heavy or when I just want to relax. But What You Wish For was just too overly cheesy, predictable, and unrealistic for me.

The book starts off OK, but once we learn that Sam's "crush," Duncan, has been hired to be the principal at her school, I started getting seriously confused. First of all, Sam quit her last job and moved across the country because of her crush on Duncan. But it sounds like she barely knew him and had a pretty typical colleague relationship with him. He never knew she liked him, they rarely even talked, and yet she moves across the country when he starts dating someone else? This felt so unrealistic to me. Then when she finds out he's coming to her current school, she immediately decides to quit and has a plan to march into school the next day and give her resignation. Who does that?!

I have a hard time getting past unrealistic circumstances like this (clearly lol) or characters I cannot relate to/understand at all, but probably could have managed if things got better. But the second Duncan comes to school, I knew exactly where the story was going and what would happen. It all felt so predictable. Also, the way Duncan is written borders on ridiculous and makes him seem like a cartoon or a clown. There were also so many incredibly obvious metaphors in the book (the succulents omg) that felt so elementary to me. I thought things might be picking up, but then the ending felt like a hot mess with so many strange things happening.

I do know this book has a lot of fans and that speaks to the fact that we all love and enjoy different things. I wish I wasn't so nit-picky with some details, but if a book doesn't feel realistic to me and I can't understand characters' motivations, I have a hard time sinking into the story. And this is the kind of book I want to sink into; to turn my brain off and just relax.

That said, the overall message of this book is a positive one and I really appreciate that. I loved reading about the school that Sam teaches at and think the world would be a better place if more schools like that existed. I actually really liked the concept of the book; it was just the details and cheesiness that drove me crazy.

I dont know why but I just couldn't get into this book. I loved the last book that she wrote but the cheese factor in this one was too much for me. It is a nice story for current times and I might have loved it more if the story line wasn't so over the top.

Katherine Center is quickly becoming an auto purchase for me! She is really knocking it out of the park with her most recent books. I enjoyed What You Wish For and the characters. There were some difficult themes in this story but she didn't make them trivial or too heavy either. It felt just right for the storyline. The main character is an elementary school librarian named Samantha. I loved this idea of the way she dresses. I would recommend this book as it was very enjoyable.

In this novel, main character Sam is the school librarian at a quirky private school, when a new principal shows up who is not only the unrequited crush Sam fled her old job to get away from, but also now has become a total jerk determined to change everything that makes the school special. I absolutely loved Katherine Center's last two books How to Walk Away and Things You Save in a Fire which were both amazing, so I'm sorry to say this one just lacked that magic. I spent the first half or so of this book kinda annoyed, both at the way Sam seemed more like a middle schooler about her her crush than a woman in her 20s, and about the at first one dimensional unpleasantness of Duncan's character though I somewhat guessed what was behind it. Things definitely improved after that, but for me this just lacked the depth of emotion and real-ness of characters of the other books by Center which I have read. (I've also read one of her old ones, still have 4 more to catch up on which I most definitely will still read.) Nonetheless, it was a cute and quick read - I just was expecting more. 3.5 stars.

Sam is a school librarian in a small Texas town. When the beloved principal suddenly passes away, Duncan is brought in as a replacement. Sam immediately recognizes him as a former coworker and knows he’ll be great for the job—he was fun, great with kids and adults alike. But people change, and Duncan isn’t the same enthusiastic teacher he used to be.
I loved the storyline and the characters in this book. It’s a romance and some of the storyline was a bit out there for me, but I’m all about stepping out of reality right now, so I was okay with that. Sam’s character was my favorite and I loved her portrayal as an elementary librarian. What a fun job! The way she was written and how she related to kids was endearing, and her relationship with Duncan was also really lovely.
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This was a cute, quick read. The story was a little slow at times, but that added to the suspense of the story, although at times it felt like too much detail for certain scenarios. I found the arc of learning why Duncan had changed painfully slow, but then once I got past that I was able to enjoy most of the book a lot better, Although at times some of the situations were just a little unbelievable or out there. For instance, Duncan's arrival and choice of school seemed out there and It didn't seem realistic that Duncan just went along with Babette's ideas despite the job being held over his head.. I think these elements make it more of a romance novel.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan for Providing an ARC.

When I heard that Katherine Center was writing a new novel, I HAD to get my hands on this! It did not disappoint me at all. As an educator, I really related to this novel. I read this book in a day and made instant connections with the characters. In a way, the setting reminded me of where I teach and that got me sucked in immediately. It told me to keep up hope and that everyone should have a second chance. It encourages me, and should readers, to remember that others have backstories that we may not know and to appreciate them. This book did not shy away from the character's circumstances but rather made you appreciate what happened to them and became personalized.

This was an entertaining enough read, but I had a hard time believing the character development. A nice, easy summer read nonetheless. I was rooting for the main characters, so that is a positive!

I'm not much of a romantic, but What You Wish For sucked me in and had me pulling HARD for the blossoming relationship between the main characters.

This is the second Katherine Center book I've read and this is the second Katherine Center book I've loved. While the plot line is on the predictable side, the writing and characters are just so good you instantly fall in love with this book.

Sam is a quirky librarian in a very well respected school in Texas. She's been "adopted" by the school's founders and when the beloved patriarch suddenly passes away her world is upended. Not only does she, along the rest of the town, have to carry on without Max, but the new school principal is her former crush Duncan Carpenter.

Duncan has CHANGED and Sam can't quite work out her feelings for him. Things are not going the way anyone planned for this school year and something has to be done about it.

If you are a Katherine Center fan you will love What You Wish For. If you have never read anything by Katherine Center, you will love What You Wish For. If you are looking for a fun, easy, romantic story - you will love What You Wish For. Bottom line it's a great read well worth your time! Almost perfect. I just wish it was a little longer so we could have gotten to know these characters even better. An easy 4 + stars.

Thank you to #Netgalley and @StMartinsPress for an advanced copy. And thank you Katherine Center for a wonderful escape from this stressful time of social distancing and self isolation.

What You Wish For by Katherine Center.
I liked this book but not as much as the past books I read by author.
It has likable characters and good dialogue.
I still will check out more books by author.

Fun, quirky, witty, romantic, and amazingly insightful, this book was just what I needed to snap out of my mood. What You Wish For is hallmark Katherine Center. I was saving this book up for my summer vacation, but with everything going on, I decided now is a better time than any. But don't start reading this on a weekday like I did, or you'll end up staying up late at night and sleeping through work the next day because you won't be able to put it down.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

I enjoyed the message of this book, but I wish it would have been longer in order to further develop several parts. There were times when I didn’t understand the characters’ motivations for their actions, and that could have been avoided with a little more development. The book’s cover is gorgeous, and if you’re a Center fan, you may enjoy it if you go into it knowing that it is different from her last 2 books.

Thanks go to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was an easy quick read with characters a little over the top. The story was a little predictable but if you want some enjoyable escapism from today’s reality this is for you. There are some subtle messages throughout the story which elevate it a little from a traditional love story. I have to say that I enjoyed some of her previous novels more but this was a nice diversion from my normal.#WhatYouWishFor #KatherineCenter #NetGalley

What You Wish For by author Katherine Center was a fun, enjoyable read. It was a story that really got me thinking and I felt like I learned something from reading it. This was not my first time reading this author, and even though I didn’t like this book as much as the other, it was still very good! She’s definitely an author that I will always choose to read. In this story the author wrote about 2 topics that you don’t read about often in books and I thought it made the story very interesting. The first was that the main character, Samantha Casey, school librarian, had epilepsy. The second topic was about school shootings. She didn’t go into a lot of detail on either so it wouldn’t be upsetting for people to read. That I appreciated. It helped to build the story and bring awareness to the readers. There’s also a romance involved for people who enjoy that. This is a book I will be recommending to my reader friends because I know they will enjoy it as much as I did. I’d like to thank NetGalley for the arc to read and review. All opinions are my own. I’ve rated this at 4 stars.

Ever since I read Katherine Center's How To Walk Away, I look forward to her books, though this is not my usual genre. What You Wish For features Sam Casey, a school librarian who lives in Galveston, Texas. She rents a beautiful carriage house from Max, her principal, and Babette, who are more than just landlords, they feel like family. Her life is pretty perfect until Max unexpectedly dies.
Duncan Carpenter is a man well known to Sam. She left her former job to escape her unrequited feelings for him. Though she isn't sure if she should stay, she does know what kind of man Duncan is and that he will be a fine replacement for Max. But the Duncan who arrives is not the same man Sam knew and she is determined to figure out what changed him.
There were some things about Sam that had me rolling my eyes. Leaving a job and a life behind because of a crush seemed unbelievable to me. I chalked it up to her being young and naive, but the fact that she considered leaving again to avoid Duncan screamed that her decision-making process couldn't be explained by her age. The story though was another slow burn and focused on living your life and choosing to be happy. I overlooked my doubts about Sam mostly because while I have been self-isolating for what feels like forever, the overall story ultimately made me smile. Not my favorite book by this author, but I will read her again.

This was a quick, enjoyable feel-good love story., as Sam, the school librarian, is reconnected with Duncan, the new school principal and a crush from Sam’s past. I liked it and am happy enough to have read it but wasn’t completely bowled over by the experience.

For me, there were a couple distinct strengths in this book. I loved the school setting. For a teacher, the school sounds like a dream-come-true and is described in colorful, sumptuous detail. The characters were relatable, for the most part, and the struggles between Sam and Duncan were both entertaining and believable. The book was quick-paced and enjoyable with an overall feel-good quality.

I did feel that while there was an attempt to reveal the complexities of the main characters, they fell flat. Sam, as a first person narrator, can be annoyingly immature at times and I didn’t think there was enough context to really identify with some of her struggles. Duncan obviously has some demons in his past but they aren’t revealed with sufficient depth so it was hard to really relate to his demeanor and his progress during the course of the book.

I also found the storyline too predictable. There were several times when I knew what was about to happen, detracting from my overall reading experience.

All is all, if you are looking for a mostly feel-good love story with a fabulous school setting and likable characters, this is an entertaining, enjoyable book..

What You Wish For is a sweet, somewhat simplistic tale of a young woman who almost - but not quite - outruns her fears & the guy she fell for once upon a time long ago. I loved the way the author makes the setting of Galveston TX feel so real, and the characters relax you instantly -this is a place you want to settle into and see what happens next. I wish the main character had been a bit more nuanced - her reactions and responses to the things that happened felt extreme and a little over the top. There were times I thought, "Really? None of these nice people had you reconsider that?" But that's just a small quibble. And...I won't give any spoilers...but there's a scene toward the end of the book, featuring a boy name Clay, that is one of the favorite moments I've read all year. It's just magical, and this novel is worth the read for that alone. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

What You Wish For by Katherine Center is exactly what I needed to read during the pandemic. Katherine’s writing style is upbeat and easy to read. It was just a pleasure reading about Sam the librarian, and the school where she works in Galveston. Along comes a new principal, who she had known in another school previously (AND had a major crush on), but his personality has drastically changed, and not for the better. Reading about Sam’s love/hate relationship with him and her quest to save her unique school is fun. I couldn’t wait to find out how it ends.
Not telling!