Book Review - Wished by Sarah Ready

This book was a unique one and not a concept I’ve ever really come across again. The only comparison I could make would be The Midnight Library with multiple alternate realities the FMC tries out so to speak.

This was a billionaire romance with a twist and a little bit of magic! It was definetely not what I was expecting but was overall easy to follow and enjoyable read. I really enjoyed the ending for this one!

3 🌟 for me

Anna Benoit is a self described romantic, allergic to lying, loves nothing more than to clean houses and help people. Max Barone owns a jewelry empire, fancies himself a shadow daddy (but really, really isn’t), and has no personality outside of being scared of passion. One day Anna finds a fancy necklace while cleaning Max’s apparently beautiful but lacking in architecture—just towering???—mansion. Since she’s wanted to be a genie since she was a child and, for some reason, that means when she wishes upon this necklace that was not hers, her wish of being Max Barone’s wife comes true.

Suddenly, they’ve been married for seven years. Anna doesn’t remember a lick of it, and Max can remember both timelines.

This was a really interesting premise but it just kind of… fell flat. I really can’t fault the narrator of the audiobook, because I think she did her best to give two people without personalities something for the reader to hold on to. The male narrator was a little too dark for the character and it didn’t sound believable. However, I just found the characters too good to be true. Anna, specifically, did literally nothing to help her situation. I swear she kind of bumbled through until everyone else solved her problems.

The plot was cute, but boring. The characters were two dimensional. The spice was… so “good” it was cringy.

This was my first dive into Sarah Ready, and I’d try it again because I think she COULD write something really good, but this was mid for me.

Thanks to the author and the publisher via netgalley for this ARC!

At first, I wasn't sure if I would like this. I'm so glad that I stuck with it. I loved their love story. There is a magical necklace, lots of miscommunication, and wishes that created a very fresh story. I love Anna's sister. She is like a ray of sunshine. I recommend this book to anyone looking for a little spice, a little bit of magic, and a lot of sweet romance. ⭐️ 4 /5 🌶 2.5/5

Sarah Ready's *Wished* is a delightful and whimsical tale that blends romance with a touch of magic. The story follows a charming and unique plot where wishes really do come true, leading to unexpected but heartwarming outcomes. The characters are endearing, with relatable quirks that make them memorable. Ready’s writing is witty and engaging, making this a perfect feel-good read that reminds you to believe in the magic of love.

Sarah Ready's Wished is, by far, the cheesiest book I've read this year. This isn't a bad thing at all, but probably important for people to know when picking up a copy. The writing is practically primed for the 90's romcom movie treatment, and the sooner you get on board with that the more you are bound to enjoy it. Wished follows our main character Anna as she answers the question 'What would you do if you had everything you wished for?'

When she wishes that she was married to her employer, the uptight but not wholly unlikeable Max, she wakes the next morning to find herself in a seven year long marriage with him. While a simple premise in essence, I was repeatedly surprised with the inventive takes that Ready incorporates into what could otherwise be quite a one note story.

Having the story bookended with Max's perspective was a particularly nice touch too, though I'm not sure that I (a lesbian) was really the target audience and so I didn't see this character's appeal until about 60% of the way into the book. I did enjoy a lot of the humour, and there were a few genuine laugh out loud moments in this book for me.

Unfortunately, I do think it was let down ever so slightly by the narration. I didn't find the tone of the reading wholly fitting with that of the book and I think that while my time listening to the audiobook did fly by, I might have enjoyed this one more in a print format. There were a few other little bugbears which pulled this from a four to a 3.5 star for me, a little repetition of certain phrases and a few metaphors so heavy handed they could knock you out, but generally speaking as soon as I let myself just appreciate this for the fun romp that it was, the more I enjoyed it.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced Audiobook copy.

This book was amazing! It was the perfect amount of fantasy and romance! The romance was so cute and the banter was amazing! I would highly recommend this book!

I downloaded this novel from NetGalley expecting light romance, and a bit of a modern-day fairy story. It was a lot raunchier than the previous book I'd listened to by the same author. And I'm not a fan of sexually explicit fiction.

Three stars from me means that I believe that the author has achieved their aims, but that I didn't fall in love with it. In this case, I think I was simply the wrong audience (sorry).

Three Word Review: Sex scene overload.

I've loved every book in this series and this one was absolutely fabulous, especially the narrators!

This is the most perfect magical romance i've ever had the joy to read!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🌶️
I read and listened to this and I absolutely loved it!! I flew through it. The narration was amazing and the story was so unique. I loved how the romance took so many fun turns 💙💜

PERFECTION!!! Thank you NetGalley, Sarah Ready, and Swift & Lewis Publishing LLC/Independent Book Publishing Association for granting me access to this book AND the audiobook in exchange for an honest review. Listening to the audiobook format adds an extra layer of magic to this captivating story of love and wishes!! 💜💜💜💜💜

My thoughts:
Sarah Ready continues to astonish with her entire Ghosted series!! I've sung her praises before, and I'll gladly do so again. Her books have a special place in my heart, and this latest release has now become my all-time favorite among her works. With each new installment, she consistently surpasses expectations,, showcasing her remarkable talent. After reading the first three books in the Ghosted series-all of which topped my favorite list each year-I knew this one would be just as extraordinary, and it certainly is! This magical, emotional, charming, whimsical, heartwarming and beautifully written paranormal romance is a story that will stay with me forever. Plus, the book covers for this series are absolutely gorgeous, perfectly capturing the enchanting spirit of the tales inside. Sarah Ready is a true master of her craft, and I sincerely hope this dreamy series never ends. I wholeheartedly recommend and it deserves and endless supply of wishing stars!!!💫💫💫💫💫✨✨✨✨✨🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Synopsis:
When Anna Benoit wishes she were married to the enigmatic owner of the chateau she cleans, she wakes up in a topsy-turvy world where she's suddenly Max Barone's wife. Anna is a hopeless romantic who believes in The One and Love at First Sight. Why? Because it happened to her. The moment she laid eyes on Max Barone, she fell desperately, hopelessly in love. It didn't matter that they came from completely different worlds-he owned a jewelry empire, and she cleaned houses. Love, after all, knew no boundaries. Except one: Max didn't even know Anna's name, much less that she existed. Then, one day, Anna made a wish. Suddenly, she's thrust into an upside-down reality where everyone believes she and Max have been married for years. It's passion. It's romance. It's love. It's everything she ever wished for. Or is it??

Fun and different, a romance book with a magic twist! It was an entertaining audiobook and easy to follow, and I liked the narrators. I found the premise interesting, but it did feel very fast pace and a insta-love; she has been in love with him for 3 years, even though she never talked to him, while he barely knew she existed, and suddenly, he's soooo in love with her... it just felt a bit rushed that their "relationship" developed over two days, I would have liked it more had it been at least a few days/couple of weeks. I liked Anna but wasn't a fan of Max at the start. I really enjoyed the ending, and the spice was quite good! Overall, it was a good and entertaining audiobook!

Thanks to NetGalley and Swift & Lewis Publishing for an advance copy of the audio in exchange for an honest review!

Magical realism at its finest. I thoroughly enjoyed this escape to Anna's wish to be married to her employer. As Max's housecleaner she has fantasies of the man she thinks he is by simply cleaning his home. I guess you could learn a lot about someone by entering the most private areas of their home. She really had an elaborate imagination, and it was fun to go along with her. I heard Max was going to make an appearance in this book and boy did he ever!

I highly recommend Wished if you enjoyed Fated (the only one I read from the Ghosted series). Romance, fantasy and magical realism.

I listened to Wished, and the narration was excellent. Amanda Ranconi captured Anna's whimsical personality and Max's persona. Will Watt as Max in the epilogue...ooolala!

Thanks to NetGalley and Swift and Lewis Publishing for an advance copy of the audio.

Super cute story. A whimsical love story. I loved Anna's honesty and how it goes against her own wishes. I really enjoyed it.

Thanks for this ARC!

The premise of this book hooked me. And I was definitely in it for the wild ride that became Anna's "reality". This book kept me guessing, had me swooning, and I fell in love with the idea that maybe, just maybe, if you wished for something hard enough it might just come true. Thank you to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC. The narrators were perfect and made this such a wonderful and easy listen.
5 stars.

the concept of this book was so fun and honestly nothing like anything I've read before. I really enjoyed this book and the author's creativity. at some points it did drag and felt a little redundant, but all in all it was an enjoyable book and I would recommend this to someone looking for a unique romance book.

Do you believe in love at first sight? Anna does. She felt it the moment she laid eyes on her stupidly rich client, Max Barone. She is one of the cleaners for the jewelry magnate's mega-mansion and might as well be invisible for as much as he notices her. But she notices him, and for three years she pines after him from afar.

One day while cleaning, she finds a necklace with a note - it makes wishes come true. So she closes her eyes and whispers her most secret wish - that the two of them would be married. Realizing how silly that is, she takes it back, but before she can put the necklace back, he catches her with it, and fires her. Not exactly the way she was hoping to be noticed by him. But when she wakes up the next morning...she finds her dream came true.

Though there is plenty of humor and silly rom-com antics sprinkled throughout, this book is much deeper than the high-concept plot might appear. I found myself contemplating much bigger philosophical questions as I listened to the advanced listening copy I was provided access to by netgalley & the publisher. Questions of free will, honesty, self-sacrifice, what love is (or what it can be), and how we hold ourselves back because of mistakes we've seen modeled for us as we grow.

Max is lonely in that big ol' mansion, and adamant that he will not repeat the mistakes of his father. Anna sees him in the way he keeps his house: the books he reads, the food he eats, the glimpses she gets of him when he works from home. Her life in a small Geneva apartment she shares with her mother and young sister is difficult, and dreaming of Max helps her cope. But will she feel the same when she gets to know him face to face?

This story is another instance of the age-old lesson: be careful what you wish for. Do valuable things have value if you don't have to work hard to get them? And when she realizes the consequences of her mistakes, can Anna undo the phenomenon she set into motion?

I can tell how much thought and craft went into this novel, and I'm intrigued to read more from this series by Sarah Ready. If you're a fan of magical realism, you're really going to enjoy this novel!

I found this book very quirky and fun! The premise intrigued me and I’d listened to one of the other books in this series and also had a good time so I knew I’d enjoy it. I think there are more plot holes in this book than some of the authors other books but I think that’s was a result of the “magic” and would have taken too long to explain when this is a romance book and not a fantasy book. That being said, the plot holes didn’t bother me cause it was such a fun and fast read that I didn’t put much thought behind trying to fill the holes. It’s hard to find a book that fits this specific mood (outside of the other books in their series), so if that’s the vibe you’re going for, definitely give this book a shot!

Thank you to NetGalley and Swift & Lewis Publishing, LLC for an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wished is a cute romance with a unique premise and a wonderful story. This is part of Sarah Ready's Ghosted series, but it can definitely be read as a standalone. Anna and Max were wonderful together. I loved the juxtaposition of different worlds and the sense that love can span anything. I thought the characters were intriguing and enjoyable. Most of the book is narrated by Amanda Ronconi, and she did an amazing job bringing me into the world and creating characters that were perfect for the story. I do really wish that it had been more of a dual narration. The only part we hear from Max's perspective is the first chapter and the epilogue. There was a lot of the book that I would have liked to know what he was thinking as well. I was expecting to hear more from his side too, since the beginning was from his point of view. It felt a little incomplete to not come back to him at all. Overall, the book was a lot of fun. I would definitely recommend it and am looking forward to going back to more of the books in this series.

Well what a lovely surprise this was! I was looking for an audio to listen to and I will admit it was the book cover that caught my attention. I’ve never read Sarah before, so Wished was a totally new experience for me. I didn’t even read the synopsis, I went in totally blind.

Be careful what you wish for, because for Anna Benoit, who is kind of a human genie, those wishes can come true!
a first for me and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I didn’t realise this was part Sarah’s Ghosted series but you can totally read this as a standalone. So I will definitely go back and listen to the other stories.

Anna cleans for the enigmatic Max Barone at his spectacular chateau by Lake Geneva. For three years she has been love with him, but he has never once really acknowledged her. One day cleaning she makes a wish that she is married to Max. What next happens is an upside/parallel world tale, which will take you on an enchanted love story that takes you on an adventure from Geneva, Paris and the French Riviera.

I thought the narrator (it is mainly narrated by Amanda) was fabulous, very engaging and done very well with all the accents. Oh and the spice when it hits is 🥵🔥

Wished is the perfect tale for this fall/spooky season, curled up in a blanket with a hot chocolate.

Really enjoyed!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC audiobook.

I didn't realise this was book 4 in a series but can be read as a standalone.

The story follows FMC Anna Benoit and MMC Max Barone in this magical , twisty turny love story.

Anna has been working as a cleaner for Max Barone for the past three years. For her it was love at first sight, for him not so much.

One day she made a wish on an a very old infamous necklace to be married to Max and for him to love her back.

The very next day , she wakes up as Mrs Anna Barone and they have been happily married for 7 years. Max remembers this alternative life as well as life the came from and in order to get back to their life they both go find the necklace to make a wish to reverse everything.

This book is full of life lessons and a lot of spice.