Oh how I love a book by Katherine Center. I was really debating on this one at first because it really took me quite a while before I liked Duncan at all-not even a little bit. This book has a really quirky cast of characters and I wasn't quite sure about them for a good bit of the book but I'm happy to say that the storyline just ended up so amazing that I couldn't help but love this book. I loved how Center wove some really serious things into this book and blended in some humor and life lessons. Center has been a favorite author of mine since reading How to Walk Away. Her writing is just so easy to read and I have enjoyed each and every book I have read by her. Being from Texas - I liked that the setting was in Galveston. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Started out a little too breezy for me, but still worth the read. Entertaining and light - a perfect recipe for a relaxing read. Thanks to the the publisher for an ARC copy!

"It's one of the secrets to life that no one ever tells you. Joy cures everything... Joy is an antidote to fear. To anger. To boredom. To sorrow."

"But you can't just decide to feel joyful."

"True. But you can decide to do something joyful."

Samantha Casey loves her position as an elementary school librarian. Her school appears to be nurturing, fun-filled, and community-focused - a dream!

Sadly, the school's beloved principal passes away over the summer, and a replacement needs to be hired. Enter, Duncan Carpenter.

Duncan Carpenter isn't just anyone though. He's Sam's former colleague who she had a major crush on. While hesitant to see him again, Sam remembers him fondly as a bigger-than-life teacher who always thought outside of the box, and feels that he'll be a great fit for her little school. That is, until he arrives in a suit, spouting statistics on gun violence in schools and new security measures he plans to put in place immediately.

What happened to Duncan, and why did he change? Sam knows all about change since she's undergone her own reinvention in recent years, but hers made her happier, while Duncan appears void of all joy.

What You Wish For takes a look at the personal traumas so many of us experience, and the journey we can take to find our way back to joy. It is nothing short of delightful, with its quirky characters, honesty, and mishaps.

Thank you to Netgalley for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an electronic ARC through NetGalley.

This is an uplifting story reminding us of the importance to always look for joy. I loved each character, and appreciated the positive messages at a time like this. I highly recommend this book, just like I do with all of Katherine Center’s books.

Samantha Casey loves her job and her life as a librarian in Galveston, Texas. That is until a horrible tragedy and a blast from the past (in the form of an unrequited love) comes to maybe take it all away. Do to her circumstances, Samantha has to step up for her self, her job, and the people in her life.
I loved reading about Samantha's growth from when she lived in California to her being in Texas, but I do wish we could have seen more from the before Samantha in order to appreciate more the new, colorful Sam.hate the concept of a woman leaving her life because a man didn't return her feelings but I get that it showed how much Sam had grown as a person.

I really enjoyed this story about a long-time crush and love/hate relationship between the librarian of an elementary school and the principal. The little town and all the other characters in the school were a nice touch, too. Katherine Center always writes a novel that keeps me up too late. Thank you to netgalley.com and St. Martin's Press for the review copy.

I absolutely adore the author Katherine Center so was so thrilled to be allowed to read her new one as an ARC from Netgalley. This story is a bit different in that the main character and the counterpart male hero have known each other before and get reunited as he becomes the principal to the school that she is a librarian of. I am not sure if the relationship is unbelievable or the characters seem to be polar opposites to be considered having a love interest. This story moved slower than the last two books I read from the same author. The romance was not as exciting but the storyline was enjoyable if not realistic set in a smaller town. . I think this one is a little bit different from her other stories but happy to have read it.

I’ve only read one other Katherine Center book, but this was keeping in what I got from the other one as well. It has the background of a cute romcom but there were some much deeper stories told there as well. It seemed to be a little darker than I thought it would be, but Things You Save in a Fire was as well. People should be prepared for some triggering content. That being said I enjoyed the back and forth between Sam and Duncan and enjoyed the story. It took about halfway for me to be fully invested, and then I was in all of the characters. A sweet romance with a deeper story for the characters.

I’ve read all of Centers books, and I will say they are all “cute”. This is a lighthearted story about a librarian who rediscovers herself in the wake of a failed crush, only to discover the crush now becomes the principal at her new school. It deals with themes of loss, trauma, and finding the joy in life. I teared up a bit at the end because of a sweet child. ⁣
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You know the phrase “show don’t tell” in regards to writing? Center isn’t a “shower”, she’s a “teller”, and that’s the one problem I have with her books. They’re fun; their feel good; they’re HEA books- there’s just something tell-y instead of show-y about them.

First off, thank you to St. Martin's Press for giving me a chance to read this book prior to the release. I have been a fan of Katherine Center's since I read her book, "How to Walk Away" and have been hooked on her writing since! "What You Wish For" did NOT disappoint!

The story starts out painting a picture of a school librarian named Samantha who loves her job, her community, and everyone she works with. Suddenly, the principle of the school dies and leaves everyone wondering who will be his replacement? His wife whom everyone thinks will take over, or someone that they don't know? The principle ends of being not being the wife of the deceased principle, but someone from Samantha's former life. Someone who Samantha had a crush on and ran away from years ago.

Although Samantha remembers the new principle (Duncan) as a fun loving, care-free teacher, he is nothing that he use to be. Duncan comes into the school and tries to change everything about the school that community has grown to love and make the school into a "prison". The guy that Samantha use to love seems to no longer be the same Duncan. Samantha is forced to find and change Duncan back to who he use to be, or leave the school she has grown to love over the years.

Even though the story started out slow, I was quickly engaged and had a hard time putting down this book. If you are looking for a quick, fun loving story, this is your book! The characters become like friends and leaving you rooting for them throughout the book!

I was drawn to this book because of the author. I've recently discovered Katherine Center and have enjoyed everything I've read including What You Wish For.

The book had a great cast of supporting characters that I would love to learn even more about. (Hoping for some spin-offs). The story begins with a tragedy in a close-knit community. This is the beginning of many difficult topics throughout the book. However, the topics were not covered in-depth so did not feel too heavy. I did feel that maybe too many topics were touched upon (illness, gun safety, military deployment, death, emotional abuse) and I would have liked to see less of them and dive a little deeper

If you've enjoyed the author's other books, you'll likely enjoy this one as well, but it probably won't rank as your favorite. This book was super predictable, not that I expected major plot twists, but you could see what was coming a mile ahead. I had a little trouble connecting with the main character at the beginning of the story. I was frustrated with her, at times, childish behaviors. (i.e. moving away from a city/job you love because of a crush). But she grew on me and I was cheering for her by the end.

However, I did stay up much later than I had intended to finish the book and I finished it in a day - so it kept me engaged and in the end I was glad I read it.

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.

Samantha has a transformation when she moves on from her past school. The Duncan Carpenter she knew in her past was fun and entertaining and is now serious and stiff. Samantha is determined to get the old Duncan back before she loses her school and her pride and joy. I wasn't expecting what happened to Duncan to be revealed but it makes sense. I loved losing myself in these two and I was hoping they could both work out their issues together. The author painted such a picture of the school you could picture every design on the wall and the library. I loved it and wished it hadn't ended.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you #netgalley

ARC kindly provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I'm so excited to talk about this book!
This story had unforgettable characters who were dealing with realistic and raw matters that unfortunately we don't see enough in books these days!
I loved the story line and without sugar coating anything, it leaves you satisfied and happy!
I highly recommend you this book!
Katherine Center is an amazing storyteller!

Katherine Center specializes in feel-good romances, and this book was made available on NetGalley as a balm for hard times. I am so grateful for that, because indeed, I read the book in a day, and it is pure sweetness, with a lovable heroine, dashing hero, an array of good friends, and a happy ending.

It’s the story of Samantha, a librarian at a private school in Galveston; when the beloved old principal dies at the start of the book, a new principal is hired — a man from Sam’s past, who she loved from afar years ago. But this once carefree, happy, delightful young man is now a bitter, gun-toting, security-obsessed douchebag who wants to turn their lovely school into a fortress. Sam is determined to get him fired - but then she finds herself falling for him again.

Look, this is not Ms. Center’s best book. That’s How To Walk Away. This one has a big gaping plot hole right in the center of it. I would think anyone can tell, from what I wrote above, what the hero’s real problem is, but Sam goes six months without finding out. (Does no one in Galveston have google? How could no one know the Big Secret From The Past?) There are weird character inconsistencies, Sam has a health issue that feels manufactured to add conflict, like it was written into the book in a later draft, if I were being truly objective I would give it three stars but...

...the publisher made a happy book available to spread happiness. And we all need a lot more happiness right now. I'm gonna say thank you, be grateful for a force for joy in the world, but also suggest if you haven't read Ms. Center before, you start with How To Walk Away, because that book was fantastic

I loved Katherine Center’s last 2 books, How to Walk Away & Things You Save in a Fire. But at 20% (Chapter 5), I just cannot get invested in this story. This doesn’t seem like Center’s previous writing style and the characters lack their usual depth. I do not plan to finish this book, so I don’t feel it is fair to publish a rating or review on my Instagram account or on Goodreads. I’m clearly in the minority here because this book has fantastic reviews on NetGalley and Goodreads. Maybe it’s just bad timing for this one. I will still pick up whatever Katherine Center writes in the future.

This is a light read with some real-life issues mixed in with the romance. The overall message is one of finding joy and accepting the help of others to help you get through the tough stuff. The characters were stereotypical and the plot was predictable, requiring suspension of disbelief in some scenes. That said, it's still an optimistic, feel-good story.

Another great story from this author. I enjoyed the storyline and the characters in it as well. Thanks for sharing!

This is a story of woman who fights to keep the joy and color from being drained from her life. Literally. Maybe that doesn't make sense yet, but I'll do my best to explain.

Samantha "Sam" Casey came to Galveston Island a new person. Escaping the potential heartbreak of an unrequited crush, she reinvents herself to a brighter, more positive personality than her former self. And at the Kempner School, she not only finds a new place to shine, but finds herself two people who she considers family, Max and Babette Kempner.

When tragedy strikes, she could withdraw, but instead, she finds a new purpose, saving the school she's come to love. To her own shock, she's saving it from the man she thought she adored, former co-worker and crush, Duncan Carpenter. But Duncan isn't the man she thought she loved. While Sam reinvented herself into something better, Duncan has seemed to go the opposite direction.

It took me a nanosecond to figure out why he changed, and I honestly couldn't figure out why no one else clued in, or why the author took so long to reveal the truth. Nevertheless, day by day, Duncan begins to drain the life and color from the school Sam and her fellow faculty have built into something special. The author did a great job of developing a connection to Sam early on, so these moments felt more impactful. You could feel how the school changes had a profound effect on Sam. And I love how hard she fought back against the change instead of just quitting.

When Duncan's truth is revealed, it changes the dynamics between the couple, especially as he confesses his feelings for Sam, under a drugged state. These confessions change the course of the story, as Sam teams up with Babette and fellow teacher, Alice, to save Duncan and their school. These moments are sweet, as the author begins to explore the potential this couple might have.

"Joy is an antidote to fear. To anger. To boredom. To sorrow."
With time, Sam brings joy into Duncan's world, and it changes everything.

This is a slow burn romance, so you'll have to be patient, but the ride, while bumpy, is a sweet one overall.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. This book publishes July 14, 2020.

What You Wish For by Katherine Center is a fun read. In the novel Sam is a private school librarian in Galveston, TX. She loves everything about her quirky, free thinking campus. Enter Sam's old crush from a previous teaching position, Duncan. Duncan used to be a fun, loving teacher that everyone loved. Now he's a very formal, rigid personality who is all about rules and school safety.

What I liked about the book:

- Engaging story line that makes you want to know more
- Dynamic characters that you can't help but love
- Quirky and interesting setting that really sets the stage for the book
- Great supporting characters

What I didn't like:

- Some of the events that occur at the school are a little over the top. If you have any familiarity with a progressive elementary school environment, this book will requirea fair amount of suspension of belief.

While this book wasn't a complete home run for me I do think it is a very well written story that many people will absolutely adore.

There's something really special about Katherine Center's books and this is no exception. We meet Samantha Casey, finally settled in her beloved school when her life is thrown upside down. The new principal is her old crush and he's most definitely changed, and not for the better.
Duncan is there to remove everything Sam loves about there school, but she isn't backing down without a fight.

Sam was a little hard for me. She was really... loud. Lots of colors and patterns, all to symbolize her blossoming into the person she was always meant to be. Of course there are some unspoken issues, but overall Sam's fun and lively personality was really charming. That said, I feel like she was a little too much. There was so much attention drawn to her clothes and mismatched attire and pink bangs, I felt like saying - we get it! She marches to the beat of her own drum!
I also wasn't sure about her past friendly acquaintance with Duncan. She met him while she was at another school in California and had these BIG feelings for him. She even moved to start over away from him. Seems a little much for someone you weren't even dating. But maybe that was the point of Samantha? She was always just a little too much?

On the flip side, Duncan was obviously strict and rigid and oh, something is def. going on there. I really liked their chemistry and it was very very easy to see how they were attracted to each other. I liked Sam MORE with Duncan and liked Duncan more with Sam. Together, they just worked and so the romance and chemistry part of the book was perfect. My favorite was when Sam had to help Duncan after some surgery. Yup, my favorite part of the book.

Center has a great way of allowing her secondary characters to be fully formed and interesting and this book was no exception. I loved Clay and his mom and his not so great Dad. I liked the school and quirky teachers and all of the fun activities the school did. I love Babbette and even Sam's carriage house had personality and flair.

Overall, this is a charming and sweet book that I read so quickly, I wish it was longer.