Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

This book was so much fun! Opposites attract, quirky and loveable elderly side characters, book boyfriend alert (Luka!), touch of magical realism...

Buttoned-up, by the book, Catherine, has fought her whole life to overcome the chaos of her upbringing and being literally raised by a clown, her free-spirited father. She has never known her mother. After finally being hired as a professor of mathematics which is her dream job, her life suddenly starts to fall apart as her whole identity has suddenly been erased. She has to figure out a way to prove that she in fact exists. Luka and his large Italian family to the rescue! Most of the book is lighthearted and sweet, but there is a deeper layer of self-discovery and coming to terms with being abandoned by a parent.

I adored our couple and the community that was so loving and supportive of Catherine on her journey. Unlike, her found mother...what a selfish woman! Boo hiss!!

4.5 stars

Thank you to Forever Pub for the eARC of this sweet book. Melissa Wiesner is quickly becoming a comfort author for me (she’s already on auto read status!). This book, like her other rom com, features a cinnamon role hero (love!) and meaningful conflict without too much angst. There’s growth for the characters, a life lesson for me, and a little bit of magic sprinkled throughout. If you want a book that will restore your faith in humanity without making you sob to get there, this is for you!

4.31 stars

Wish I Were Here by Melissa Wiesner

Thank you to Netgalley, Forever, and Melissa Wiesner for an ARC copy.

Synopsis:
 Catherine Lipton carefully calculates everything, and not just because she’s a math professor. She had a chaotic childhood growing up with a free-spirited single dad. So now, from her daily to-dos to her afternoon snacks, Catherine has a plan for it all. But sometimes she wishes she could be someone else, someone with a totally different life. Until suddenly her entire identity—from her Social Security number to her driver’s license to her academic record—mysteriously disappears. There’s no evidence Catherine Lipton ever existed.

With no ID and no other options, Catherine reluctantly accepts help from her exasperatingly laid-back—and infuriatingly attractive—doorman, Luca Morelli. Before long, by-the-books Catherine finds herself bending all the rules with the charismatic Luca—from taking meetings in smoky bars to breaking into hospital record rooms—and having a surprising amount of fun. As Catherine unravels the truth behind her identity’s disappearance, she may discover that the real Catherine has been missing for a lot longer than she realized.

3.5/5 stars

I enjoyed this book and the concept of the disappearance of Catherine’s identity, but was it my favorite read of the year? Unfortunately, no.

I love the concept of close proximity that had to happen between Catherine and Luca, but it was making me frustrated because Catherine went from hating Luca to her instantly adoring the crap out of him. Was it because he was helping her find out why her identity disappeared overnight? Maybe, but it was just all of a sudden in my opinion. There was just no transition at all in my opinion. Also Luca and Catherine’s romance lacked. I didn’t feel any chemistry between them. I wanted more from them as a couple.

I also was expecting something huge to happen when she found out how her identity disappeared, but it was very anticlimactic. It seemed like it took me forever to get to that point in the story too.


There were points in the story I was invested, but it just wasn’t enough for me.

I flew through this book, it was so fast paced! Melissa’s writing kept me intrigued the whole time. I’ve been getting into magical realism this year and have been really loving it! I loved Luca and Catherine’s characters. I enjoyed how different they were from each other and how well they balanced each other out. The secondary characters in this book were so endearing (Sal and his butterscotch candies stole my heart). I loved the found family element. I teared up a few times but I also laughed a lot!

4 stars.

After thoroughly enjoying Melissa Wiesner's "The Second Chance Year," I was really looking forward to her new book, "Wish I Were Here." I am happy to report that this book is great. It's all about embracing chaos and mess in the name of enjoying your life, accepting people for who they are, seeing things from a different perspective, loosening up, found family, and shedding your old identity to find a new one. The main character, Catherine, has walls a mile high. She is a ridiculously organized, type-A planner who has been plotting every step of her life since she was little because of the way she grew up with an absent mother and a flaky circus clown father (not hyperbole). Luca, her building's doorman, is her total opposite in every single way. He is a fun-loving, heart-on-his-sleeve, aloof guy who never plans a thing and frequently leaves work at the drop of a hat to help the residents of the building. On paper, the two of them don't work at all, but luckily, as Catherine's walls start to come down slooooowly but surely, they embark on a quest to find her birth certificate...and perhaps find love along the way. This story is a mostly light read with a few moments of deep emotion. It is full of laughs, magical realism zaniness, and even a smidgen of heart squeezing. I liked all of the secondary characters in this story, too. All in all, I liked this book a lot, and I cannot wait to read Wiesner's next book!

Thank you to NetGalley, Melissa Wiesner, and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

This book was wonderful! I’m a huge fan of magical realism and wish there were more just like this. To be honest I wanted this book because the cover made me think of Doctor Who (specifically the best Doctor, Ten). I wasn’t surprised the story was as great as it was. I came for a fun case of ‘missing identity’ and stayed for found family, well connected well meaning mafia family, and funny elderly antics. I cried through the end of the book because the character development was perfect. I love Luca and wish so desperately for all of my single friends to find a man half as caring as him.

For most of Wish I Were Here, I thought it was a solid three-star read. Catherine and Luca felt like exaggerated versions of their “by-the-books” and “free-spirited” personalities, and I struggled to connect with either of them. The insta-love between them didn’t quite click for me, especially since it seemed to happen partially off-page, and the magical realism felt like it could have been more fleshed out to have a stronger impact.

But the ending was impactful and really changed my thoughts on the book. The twist may have been a bit predictable, but it still brought me to tears. The last chapters brought in so many powerful lessons about life, love, and balance that I couldn’t help but feel more connected to the story. I also really enjoyed the side characters and the sense of found family that Catherine decides to accept—those moments added a lot of warmth and depth.

3.75⭐️

Catherine is living on her own for the first time and about to start her new career as a math professor when she makes a wish and loses her identity...

I liked the magical realism element in this and there was a huge cast of characters that made the story interesting and fun. But, I didn't feel like the characters read as late 20s and some of their actions seemed a little too young for me. I also just thought it was completely random that her father wanted to be a clown and just found it a strange and dramatic way to describe her character development.

I just couldn't get into this one at all. I'm not writing it off fully though. I get the premise and that's what intrigued me the most. So I will be giving it another shot down the road when I'm ready for romance book and not in a fantasy kick.

2! I found the main character extremely unlikable and could not find myself wanting to continue the story. I did not connect with any of the characters either.

I found the main character to be incredibly unlikable. The beginning pages of the story were so jumbled that I felt like I was running on a treadmill trying to keep up with what was happening.

This was such a feel-good book. It's a story of Type A Catherine and easy-going Luca.

Catherine wakes up one day, on the day of her orientation for her new job, only to find her identity has been wiped away. It was a joy to see Catherine become less stuffy and the relationship between her and Luca blossom.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc. This is my honest opinion of the book. I highly recommend it.

A huge thank you to @readforeverpub and @melissawiesnerauthor for the eARC!
I ended up reading in tandem with the audio and picking up a copy for my shelves
First off, if you haven't heard of Wish I Were or Melissa's previous novel: The Second Chance Year, you are missing out! The Second Chance Year was a five star read for me and I loved Wish I Were Here just as much.
With relatable characters, a dose of magical realism and of course romance Melissa Wiesner pulls in the reader and writes such a compelling story. I loved the mystery element in this one too! This was a perfect blending of genres with such a satisfying conclusion and message.
This was so much fun and @hlaserwolf absolutely killed the narration - so well done and made the FMC even more likable, relatable & realized. Wish I Were Here is out now!

Opposites attract when a buttoned-up professor, Catherine, and a carefree doorman, Luca, team up to restore a missing identity in this magical romance.

Oh my poor, sensitive heart is destroyed after reading this. I never expected to feel this emotional for this book!

I'd like to begin by saying that it's not just a romance novel, it's so much more than that. It's the family dynamics and how a great, loving, supporting family can shape you up. As much as I cried reading about Catherine & her dad, I laughed the double amount reading about Luca & his family shenanigans.

Catherine and Luca..... ah this was a match made in heaven. Their relationship was written in the stars & the whimsical romance made me giddy. Luca was the perfect golden retriever who was misunderstood at times. He wore his heart on the sleeves & was there whenever anyone needed him. Catherine's identity crisis needed to happen for her to get clarity, which also brought her closer to her dad.

Everything about this story was perfect & unique! I love when the MCs are connected in a way they don't realize until it becomes a huge part of their relationship. A must read!

<i>Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.<i>

Wish I Were Here was such a fun read. I do love a Grumpy/Sunshine trope and even better when the woman is the grump :) I loved Catherine and Luca. Very much A type personality meets golden retriever energy. Catherine has a good reason to be a little uptight with how she was raised by her dad.

I really enjoyed the concept of losing her identity. Not as magical as Melissa Wiesner's previous book, The Second Chance Year, but it had its own bit of magic.

It was a super cute read. The romance was sort of underlying and this was more a story of growth and discovery.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for the ARC. This review is my own opinion.

This was such a good romance and I absolutely loved it. A must read for Ashley Poston fans. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

Wish I Were Here was one of my most anticipated reads, because I adored The Second Chance Year, but I might have overhyped it in my own head, because it fell just the tiniest bit flat for me. The writing was on-point, the characters well-developed and well-written, and the story well-paced. But I just didn’t fall in love with it the way I did TSCY. An uptight mathematics professor who was raised by a literal clown who grew up to be rigid and unforgiving in their ways meets her happy-go-lucky, free spirited doorman when an unthinking wish, made in haste, results in her losing her entire identity. It’s an opposites-attract romance full of laughs (her dad is a literal clown) and a few tears (she finally meets the mom she never knew, he lost a family member) but their chemistry was just so-so. Overall it was a fun read, but didn’t stick with me as long after I finished.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC!

3.5 Stars!

I love a grumpy X sunshine, and we get that with this one. I found several moments between Catherine and Luca laugh out loud worthy. I loved that Catherine felt relatable to me in most scenes. There is also a touch of found family in this one.

What didn't work for me was the lack of chemistry between Catherine and Luca. I would've liked more buildup of tension or cute moments to really feel the connection between them. Also, I found this one to focus more on self-discovery. Which is fine, but not really what I gathered from the blurb.

Overall, if you're looking for a book that focuses on self-discover with a touch of romance, then I think you would love this one!

I really enjoyed this heartwarming story filled with lovable characters. The storyline is unique and quirky and I enjoyed following Catherine as she tries to solve her problem. Due to her upbringing, she an organized, guarded, workaholic. Luca, the doorman in her apartment building, is kind, warm and friendly. He’s the kind of person that will stop to help anyone and she’s immediately drawn to him. Their worlds collide and I loved watching Catherine slow down, embrace the little moments in life and let her guard down. This story was filled with life lessons and I loved the importance of community and found family. The ending was emotional and perfect. Another beautiful story by Wiesner!

Big thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the opportunity to read this ARC!

Being a bit (okay…a LOT) Type A, I was immediately drawn to this book’s protagonist: a straight-laced, rule-abiding mathematician named Catherine Newton who wakes up one day to learn that her identity has disappeared! We’re talking Social Security Number, driver’s license record, bank accounts…all GONE. Luckily, her building’s carefree (and very handsome) doorman, Luca Morelli, is willing to lend a hand, helping Catherine discover much more than her MIA identity.

This book had a lot of heart and I enjoyed the colorful characters, especially Catherine and Luca’s octogenarian neighbors! The boisterous Morelli family was another highlight, bringing a quirky heist vibe to the book, with their stakeouts, Mafia meetups, and other shenanigans.

The overall mystery, however, fell flat for me, mainly due to the subtle use of magical realism. I normally adore that type of story but it was introduced so late that I felt disappointed, as if the whimsy were an afterthought. Considering the seriousness of Catherine’s identity issue, the sudden tone shift felt unearned.

There are many other elements to love, though, such as an endearing found family storyline and an effort to save a community center. While this book didn’t hit all the right notes with me, it’s a sweet story overall with a relatable message for us Type-A individuals about the growth we can experience when we show ourselves grace.