As You Wish by Chelsea Sedoti

Title: As You Wish

Author: Chelsea Sedoti

Publish Date: January 2nd, 2018

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Source: ARC courtesy of Raincoast Books! (received late due to post office confusion)

Summary by Goodreads.

What if you could ask for anything- and get it?

In the sandy Mojave Desert, Madison is a small town on the road between nothing and nowhere. But Eldon wouldn’t want to live anywhere else, because in Madison, everyone gets one wish—and that wish always comes true.
Some people wish for money, some people wish for love, but Eldon has seen how wishes have broken the people around him. And with the lives of his family and friends in chaos, he’s left with more questions than answers. Can he make their lives better? How can he be happy if the people around him aren’t? And what hope is there for any of them if happiness isn’t an achievable dream?
Doubts build, leading Eldon to a more outlandish and scary thought: maybe you can’t wish for happiness…maybe, just maybe, you have to make it for yourself.

Penelope's Review

     

As you Wish ended up being an ok, fairly interesting read. I found the plot to be quite unique which is what attracted me to the novel in the first place (I mean really, who doesn't wish for a wish to come true, right?) However, there was a few things that I didn't really enjoy that prevented this from being a favorite. 

The main character, Eldon, was very self-centered and arrogant and although there were some redeeming qualities about him, such as his evident love for his sister, that didn't much change throughout the novel. Even his wish, the whole point of the book, turned out to be kind of selfish. I believe that it was meant to come across as 'for others' or 'in the best interests of the town of Madison' but I was hoping for something more. In the end, I didn't see the character development of Eldon that I would have liked. He stayed pretty much the same, as pointed out by his ex-girlfriend Juniper. 

I did also find the story slow going. Yes I was able to finish the book quickly, but not much happens throughout the book and with such a fascinating premise I feel there could have been a lot more done with it. Every chapter was much of the same thing over and over again. Eldon needs to figure out what to wish for, he complains every step of the way, and there just isn't much more to it than that.  

I also didn't like the multitude of touchy subjects brought into the book but not really expanded upon or integrated into the story (such as God and domestic abuse). I feel that if the author wanted to include such topics they should have been more tied into the plot and not just thrown into the story as they were.

I really wanted to like this book, and while it wasn't horrible by any means, it just wasn't my favorite. I'm sure others have various opinions however so I encourage you to try it out for yourself and form your own opinions!

RATING: 3/5 Devils!