Wish by Alexandra Bullen

Published: January 2010

Publisher: Point

# Pages: 336

Copy Provided by: Library

Summary: Goodreads

For broken-hearted Olivia Larsen, nothing can change the fact that her twin sister, Violet, is gone... until a mysterious, beautiful gown arrives on her doorstep. The dress doesn't just look magical; it is magical. It has the power to grant her one wish, and the only thing Olivia wants is her sister back. With Violet again by her side, both girls get a second chance at life. And as the sisters soon discover, they have two more dresses-and two more wishes left. But magic can't solve everything, and Olivia is forced to confront her ghosts to learn how to laugh, love, and live again. In a breathtaking debut from Alexandra Bullen, Wish asks the question: If you could have anything, what would you wish for?

This was a very sweet story about Olivia trying to come to terms with her sister's death. When she moves to San Francisco she makes new friends and tries to fit in, while learning how to live on her own and become her own person. She becomes friendly with Calla, who is not your usual queen bee, but seems like a genuinely nice person. When Olivia is invited to a fancy gala, she receives a fancy new dress and discovers she can have one wish.

Wish is a little bit of a Cinderella story, with a combination fairy godmother and genie in Posey, who is wonderfully gruff and unfriendly. There is of course a handsome prince, and the development of this story arc was interesting, with a wonderful little twist half-way through. The first kiss was just really lovely and I had a wonderful aaahhh moment. In fact all of the characters were nice - I related to Calla's heartbreak and Olivia's confusion, Mike's disappointment and Soren's tentative flirting.

I personally hadn't seen any advertising for 'Wish', although I'm sure there was some out there. I was going through the new additions at work and I thought it looked interesting. When you read a story that has had a lot of press, you start with certain expectations and this wasn't the case with 'Wish'. I was very pleasantly surprised. It didn't take me long to finish the book and I quite enjoyed it. It was a gentle, thoughtful story, that I think gave the message that it's ok to move on with your life after tragedy.