Member Reviews
Teresa G, Educator
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of As You Wish by Chelsea Sedoti. In a hot, tiny town in the desert, people keep a low profile. They get tourists coming through, but work hard to get rid of them ASAP. The town of Madison has a secret. Every resident, at their eighteenth birthday, can go into the cave and make any wish they want. Some wish for money, some love, some fame, but Eldon can't figure out what to wish for. His birthday is only days away, so he decides to interview members of the town to ask about the pros and cons of their own wishes. I'm actually surprised that this book isn't rated higher, I enjoyed it immensely. And I found it surprisingly philosophical. Is getting any wish you want a good thing? Is it interrupting the natural forces of the universe? Can getting something, that would be normally unattainable, a good thing? The books addresses all of these questions in a really fun, well written story. |
A very interesting concept to a book. A town that has a mysterious cave that grants wishes, but only one wish per person and it happens on that person's 18th birthday. There are some catches, most importantly it can not effect anything outside their small town, Madison. This book centers around one boy, approaching his 18th birthday. I did enjoy the fact that we the main character goes around town asking others who are older than him what their wish was. Some of their stories were heartbreaking. This is by no means a light read but it does make one think, what would you do if you were in the same situation. I thought this would be a book where we learn early on what this guys wish was and then havoc ensues, but it is definitely more of a lead up to the events. Solid read. There is one thing i had issues with and it was one of the characters and his language. I don't want to spoil but it did make me a little unforgettable to read. |
I did not enjoy this one. I read it long ago and forgot to give input, but I found it to be too tropey. The characters lacked depth. Overall, I think that the story had potential but fell flat in its execution. |
I tried reading this book but sadly I didn't make it very far while reading this book. I think that the different point of views made it a bit difficult to understand . I usually love this author's books and I hoped that this one would work out for me. |
An unreliable narrator with a touch of the unlikeable, I throughly enjoyed the craft of this book, even if the story itself was not always my cup of tea. Eldon made for a compelling character read and a study in development. |
Chelsea Sedoti writes such fun, whimsical novels with strange characters that I just can't help but fall in love with. She never disappoints me with her work, and As You Wish is no different. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. |
The pacing of the plot in which this story was executed was a little bit too slow for me. Though I did enjoy getting to meet many of the townsfolk and learning what their wishes were and what consequences they were living with because of those wishes, the main plot just didn't grab my attention quite as much as I'd hoped it would. |
“As you Wish” captured my attention from the bio but in the end it fell slightly short from my expectations. It took a while to finish the book and kept getting put on back on the TBR pile. The book itself is a quick read but it just did not capture my attention long enough to go through quickly. The plot and character develop is a slow-burn, and not just a bit a little bit. However, the backstories of the plot gave it more character and it was enjoyable. The ending did leave me a tad unsatisfied however. Wish it was a tad more put together with less loose ends. If you like slow-burn high school drama, it will be a good read for you. A copy of the book was provided by the publisher in return for an honest review. |
The premise is both enchanting and fascinating, yet poorly illustrated. For one thing, where is the plot exactly? Nothing really seems to, in the truest sense of the word, happen. Additionally, the novel addresses way too many taboo topics such as abuse, God, and sexual orientation that deter away from the narrative into a risky ideological territory which seems to be left open in the story only to arrive at yet another. |
My apologies for not reviewing this book. I was unable to download it before the archive date. I would in the future really like to read it |
This was a good coming of age young adult story about a 17 year old boy who is grieving his younger sister's comatose state, and also is feeling pressured about what his wish will be (his hometown of Madison, Nevada has a magical cave that grants one wish when you turn 18 years old). |
The story of a town where everyone gets one wish, to be made on their 18th birthday, and about one young man who just can't decide what to do. This story sounded like a fun blend of YA/young reader and magical realism, and it did not disappoint. I was actually impressed at the depth Sedoti managed to dive to concerning human nature and the philosophy around wishing and what happens when we get what we think we want. Also, she delves into free will and consequences. Often times YA/young reader books skirt the big issues, but Sedoti tackles it with grace and a gentle hand. Overall, a good story, well-written, with solid characters. Probably won't be one I re-read, at least in the foreseeable future, but it was worth the read through! |
I really liked the writing style. I loved that it was a day-to-day format and we really got to see Eldon’s journey. I also LOVE LOVE LOVED the wish history chapters we got. They fleshed out the town and made all the citizens real. It was so raw seeing the aftermath of people’s wishes, while also having some great humor. Though I definitely teared up a few time reading about people’s wishes. |
There is something appealing about an unlikable main character and a bit of magical realism. This is a unique coming of age story in which the main character learns a lot about himself and what he wishes for. |
Everyone is annoying in this novel, starting from the main character. I don't like him and I kept reading just to discover new instances where he annoys me. The other characters are not impressive, and the plot is lacking. I was expecting more from this one, but I finished it disappointed. |
I haven’t gotten around to read this yet, my TBR is so long, sadly this got pushed back, but I’m hoping to get to it soon! |
I like the overall premise to As You Wish. Everyone in the town gets to make a wish on their 18th birthday that comes true. Yes, there are lots of caveats, but that is the overall idea. The main narrator explores whether making the wishes is a good or a bad thing and how each person's wish ultimately changes his/her life. I found this to be an original YA plot and I liked the middle-of-nowhere Southwest location. What didn't work for me? The religion thrown in. I really didn't see the point and it felt a bit preachy to me. Let me say this is NOT a religious book, but I don't really understand why religion was even brought into the story. Overall, I liked but didn't love this one. I found it enjoyable to return to. I liked it better as audio than as the e-book that I started with. |
Yawnfest. Nowhere near as good as I thought it would he. That and the cover change. Why would you make such gorgeous cover into something so generic. |
I couldn't do it. All right, I'm lying, I could've done it. Finish this book, that is. But I didn't want to. It started off quite interesting, but didn't manage to hold my attention. Felt pretty slow-paced and I didn't connect to the main characters. Maybe one day I get back to it. |
An interesting premise that is well-executed the majority of the time through the book. The ending had a surprising twist which I did not see coming! |








