This review is for book one of the I Wish series, a unique take on genies.
I would say this book is more of a contemporary fiction novel with a fantasy spin.

This was another I read via text-to-speech on my Kindle at work.

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I Wish by Elizabeth Langston

Read: September 2015

Format: ARC Ebook (Kindle)

My Book Rating: 4/5 Stars

Genre: Fantasy Romance

 

 

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

On the surface, I Wish is a paranormal romance about a human and her genie. But really, it’s more than that.

I Wish is Lacey’s story. She’s nearly eighteen and the primary caretaker of her family. Her father died when she was six and her stepfather died one year before the books events take place. Her mother is suffering from sever depression and Lacey is sure if she tries to get help there will be social workers who will take Lacey and her eight year old brother, Henry, away. She’s been in child protective services once before, after her father died. She doesn’t want Henry to have to go through that.

To support her family and pay the bills Lacey has a job at a bookstore and she’s been pawning the family valuables at the local flea market. She receives money from her dad’s military death benefits, and her mother and brother receive social security, but it’s barely enough to pay the mortgage. They are in dire need, late on bills and living on pasta.

When Lacey gets her hands on a beat up music box at the flea market she thinks if she can clean it up she might be able to sell it for more. So she takes it home, starts scrubbing the box, and in a puff of smoke, her genie appears. And he’s an extremely attractive teenage boy who tells her his name is Grant. He quickly explains that he is there to serve her, she is his mistress, and there are rules. Lacey will not receive 3 wishes, instead she will receive 30 wishes—one per day for the next 30 days. There’s a catch, while Grant has magic, he is only able to grant wishes that are humanly possible. No wishing for a million dollars or a new car.

Lacey, being the practical and responsible person she is, makes a list of everything Grant can help her with and soon he becomes her personal handyman. While he helps her fix up the house and find ways to make money to help support the family, she also learns some life lessons. Lacey does not like to accept charity, she’s doing just fine supporting the family. Grant helps her learn to accept help and realize she can’t do everything on her own. It was interesting watching Lacey grow.

One of the things I most enjoyed about the story were the letters from Grant to hiss Boss at the end of each chapter, outlining the wish he granted for the day and his overall feelings/observations. It was interesting watching him learn and grow.

Now, my one gripe with the story is the romance between Grant and Lacey. The whole story we’re building up a relationship between Lacey and her classmate Eli (who is also her brothers soccer coach) and then we’re thrown a curveball when Grant and Lacey fall for each other. Sure she’s been physically attracted to him from the get go, but he does not have a full range of human emotions, because he’s not human. He doesn’t think the way humans think. I sort of feel like the author was expected to have Grant and Lacey be together, so she made it happen. Ultimately, I don’t think it really added a lot to the story the way it was done. If the romance build had been more organic and less sudden, I would be more okay with it.

Even with that small gripe (that others may not share at all!) I still give it 4 stars and do recommend this book. The sequel Wishing For You releases October 13. Watch for my review on that book very soon!