I will admit that I absolutely read this book because I loved the cover. I am SO glad that I did.

The Wishing Game is somewhat of a retelling of the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory story. Only in the absolute best way possible. Lucy as a mid 20s kindergarten aide who wants more out of her life. Specifically, she wants to foster one of her students who had a tragedy happen in his life. The story unfolds where Lucy has the opportunity to participate in a contest to possibly win something that could garner her a lot of money.

This book was like a warm hug. The characters were likable. Honestly, I was rooting so hard for Lucy at the end.

An immense thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for providing the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. This book with stick with me for a while.

I typically love books about books, but unfortunately this was not my cup of tea. Still, I believe we will get a copy for our collection.

Think Charlie & the Chocolate Factory and The Hunger Games (minus the violence), but with a bookish twist, I laughed, shed a few tears, and closed the book at the end feeling good. The Wishing Game is a warm hug to book lovers everywhere!!

I was given a complimentary digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review. All opinions are mine alone.

This brought me back to my childhood days.
Not much to say otherwise but was a good read
It did feel a bit long though and could have been slightly more engaging

I loved reading this book. The game starts with a riddle and takes you on an exciting adventure on an Clock Island. This story is very clever.
I had a hard time believing this was a first book by this author. The pacing of the story is perfect. The writing is amazing. The game set up flows well.
It’s a great read for all ages.

THIS BOOK. I have already recommended it to the people I love most. This is a very special story, and I love the comparisons I'm seeing to Willy Wonka. One of my favorite books for my student is Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library, and this book feels like that, but for adults. Highly recommend!!!

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

A great feel-good read, in its own way. I had initial doubts, as some of the beginning felt more YA, but I'm glad that I stuck with it. It was a good story and I enjoyed it.

What a lovely book! I thoroughly enjoyed this one. As a lover of Willy Wonka this story tugged at my nostalgic heart with its callbacks to my favorite ever competition story. It’s a multi-layered story of a wonderful woman with an important dream and the chance for that dream to be fulfilled through an adventure contest with her favorite author. It was tender and quirky, fun and heartfelt. Loved it!

**Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine Books for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.
Wow, what can I say. The author took a movie I grew up on and loved, and turned it into a novel for adults.

Jack Masterson, successful author with a large following, has stopped writing books, and returned over a decade later with a new novel. The novel will not be published traditionally. Fans must compete to win the book.

Lucy Hart is a teacher’s aide with a special relationship with a student who is in foster care. Not being a candidate for foster parenting, Lucy is worried she will lose young Christopher. But will the opportunity to compete to win Jack Masterson’s new book change all this.

Complete with “slugworth” a like character, I couldn’t help but love this book. The author maintained such a fantastic level of comparison with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I thoroughly enjoyed it! I highly recommend to anyone looking for an original read!

So heartwarming and magical. It’s a nod to Charlie and the chocolate factory and it shows. Amazing characters and the romance didn’t few forced and gah Clock Island, please take me there Immediately.

Wishes do come TRUE!

The Wishing Game is charming, whimsical and heartwarming. Let go of your disbelieves to enjoy the pure imagination of Materson's novels on Clock Island, and step into a magical reading experience.

Lucy is invited to Clock Island to compete for the ultimate prize from the reclusive author, Jack Materson, a copy of his latest novel. If she wins, she can sell it to achieve her ultimate wish, to be the mother of a seven year old orphaned boy at her school. Lucy's fascination with Materson's works has translated to Christopher, showcasing the power reading has on young minds. Together, they've read and reread the stories.

Lucy's history with the stories led her to the island in her youth, begging to be Materson's sidekick. Now, many years later, she's back to overcome her life struggles to hopefully have a little boy call her Mom. This novel has me feeling all sorts of emotions - happy, sad and angry.

The Wishing Game had me reflecting on the authors from my youth, and how the power of reading serves as an outlet to escape the everyday. It was a story that will stick with me for a very long time.

Thank you Random House for the complimentary copy.

What if you could live in the world of your favorite childhood series? Which one would it be? For Lucy this dream is coming true just in time to give her a chance to adopt a boy and rescue him from foster care. This multi-layered new release is set on Clock Island. The author of the series holds a contest for four adults who have been super fans of his books. One thing I enjoyed was trying to solve the riddles in the challenges. That being said, I though author Jack Masterson was too manipulative. While I really loved Hugo Reese, the illustrator, and was rooting for Lucy to win the contest and adopt Christopher. Does she win? You will have to read the book and find out. 😉

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for. DRC in exchange for an honest review.

I went into this book pretty blind and was, for some reason, expecting a thriller. I was pleasantly surprised to instead read a heartwarming and adorable book about never giving up on your deepest wishes, and the power of connection. Neat, tidy, and satisfying!

Reclusive best selling children's author Jack Masterson is holding a competition, the winner will get the only copy of his long awaited book continuing his famous series. Lucy Hart wants nothing more than to adopt Christopher, but without money to get her a reliable vehicle and housing that doesn't seem like it will happen. When she gets invited to Clock Island to partake in Jack's game, hope blooms. His books helped her through a rough childhood and she has read them all with Christopher now that he is in her life. This might just be the opportunity they have been wishing for.

For some reason I went into this expecting it to be heavier on the romance, while there is some casual flirting, I wouldn't say there is really any romance in this one. With that said, I really enjoyed it. This was very beautiful and whimsical and overall just made me feel good to read it. It reads as if it is inspired by Charlie and the Chocolate factory in the best possible way. I was drawn in by the characters and wanted them to get their Happy Ending.

Overall, very enjoyable read.

* I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. All thoughts are my own.

I loved how this book made me feel as I was reading. I cried at the end for multiple reasons (no spoilers!) and I just thought it was really well done. I could imagine that I was there, watching as Lucy tried to solve the riddles and work to win her dream. All of the supporting characters also seemed really interesting and really added value to the story. It was also a really quick read because I just could not put it down!

I would absolutely recommend The Wishing Game!

The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer was such a magical read! Filled with characters I truly cared about, the adventure of the magical Clock Island, and all those wonderful Clock Island tales. The story unfolds at a nice pace and the keeps the reader turning the pages. The novel touches on love, loss, and the art of being brave. This tale hit all the emotions - I laughed, I cried, and everything in between. I finished the book and immediately wanted to start reading it again. The Wishing Game is a book about books and will be cherished by any booklover! Truly magical!

Thank you to NetGalley, Meg Shaffer, and Ballantine Books for the opportunity and read and review this wonderful novel!

This little novel is like a love-letter to the reading of your childhood and those that just love books. Thank you @ballantine and @prhaudio for my copy of @Meg_shaffer THE WISHING GAME.

The novel is the pen name first release from @tiffany_reisz and it follows Lucy as an adult with flashbacks to her difficult childhood and woven in with her current life, trying to adopt a little boy named Christopher.

Jack is the mastermind of Lucy and Christopher’s favorite children’s series; a series that captured them as children and helped them navigate the difficulties of life. Jack is also that author you’d love to have as a childhood penpal! He spends his time living on Clock Island, and uses his immense wealth from the book sales to help those who cannot help themselves.

Hugo is Jack’s book illustrator and has come to live at Clock Island looking after Jack for several years. Jack has decided to bring back 4 adults that he wrote with as children, to grant their largest wish ever by solving riddles that will lead to them possibly earning the only copy of his newest novel- the first one he’s written in years. Of course Lucy jumps at the chance to come and compete to win the book, because this book would mean she could adopt young Christopher.

It’s a beautiful story of growth and forgiveness, found family and strength. If you love reading books, enjoy redemptive stories and the pain of navigating life, you will enjoy this debut novel. I recommend the digital/print version over the audio- there were some odd ebbs and flows that distracted me, but when I went back to my kindle version all was good!

I do have a serious question though, how old is Hugo?!
I just cannot connect it all together and I need to know!

Interesting premise, but I couldn’t get into the book! It came off as a Willy Wonka style story but with books. It just didn’t capture or hold my attention very well.

Remember those books you read as a child? The ones that transported you to another world. The ones that made you wish you lived in the story. That's what The Clock Island books did for the characters in Meg Shaffer's The Wishing Game.

And now those children are adults with grown-up wishes. Like Lucy who wishes to become a mother to a foster care child whom she tutors, but she doesn't have the means to support them. If only she could win some money...

And then a letter from Jack Masterson, author of The Clock Island series of books, sends her and three others a letter. They've been invited to his island home to play a game, and the winner of the game wins the only copy of his next book. Selling the book would give Lucy the money she needs, but first she has to win.

Along with three other contestants, all of whom were such fans of the series that they ran away from home to the island as children, there's Hugo, the artist who illustrates the books' covers. He's been working with Jack for many years and has been living on the island with Jack, making sure that Jack is okay. Will this contest give him reason to leave? Or will something or someone make him stay?

Get ready, y'all, because at the end of this book I was sobbing! It's such a lovely story about redemption, love, and wishes!

The Wishing Game is published by Ballantine Books and will be available to purchase on May 30, 2023. I received a free e-ARC from the publisher.

Kindergarten teaching aide Lucy Hart had a lonely childhood that was only made bearable because of the Clock Island book series she adored. Now in her twenties, she shares her love of the series with one of her students, Christopher. Orphaned when his parents tragically died, Lucy wishes to adopt him. But without enough money to afford a car and an apartment, it seems that wish won’t be coming true. Lucy and Christopher are thrilled when Jack Masterson, the elusive author of the Clock Series books, announces he has written a new book after years of silence. But there’s a catch- only one copy of the book exists, and Jack is holding a contest to see who will win it. When Lucy is chosen as a contestant, it just might make her wishes come true.

The Wishing Game is a simple, quick, enjoyable read. At times simple and predictable, this read as more of a YA book than literary fiction. A bit slow to start, it picked up momentum towards the end and overall it was a pleasant read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the advance copy of this book.