This was ADORABLE and I absolutely loved it! Suspense, great world building and most of all, had HEART! I will be hand selling this one easily!

Wishful Thinking has a little bit of everything - humor, workplace politics, romance, mystery. And Saffron is everything you could ask for in a heroine - she's smart, driven, doesn't take crap from anyone, always seeks out ways to do right by others, and if full of self-confidence. The supporting characters all add something to the story and are given enough personality to keep them from being one-dimensional. Saffron's problems at work having you rolling your eyes right along with her.

This is a great first book for a series, it gives all the background information you need and sets up the premise for the series without slowing down the narrative. The author balances the humor and more serious events perfectly. The pacing of the story is also perfect with no slow points. Saffron's work with her clients is given as much of a focus as her work on the main mystery of the story. Seeing her with her clients made me like her even more than I already did. It's nice to have a story about a woman who takes pride in her work, loves her work, and also keeps a good work-life balance. The romance is there, but plays a secondary role to the rest of the story rather than being the main focus.

This book had so much more substance than I was expecting from the description. I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. I can't wait for book two this fall!

This is my first time reading Ms. Harper's work, and it's clear from the first few pages that I'm in the hands of a strong writer. The narrative is clever and fun, the right mix of mundane and magic.

In the book, a dope fairy (the existence of which is just an awesome way to open the book) named Saffron gets a sudden offer to join the elite group of fairy godmothers. She's ecstatic at first until she realizes she might not have been called in because of her fairy skills but rather because of the disturbing number of disappearances of fairy godmothers lately. The office is short-staffed, everyone is stressed out, and nobody seems to think she's capable of anything or deserves to be there. It's the type of scenario a lot of people can relate to. And the more Saffron gets told she can't do something, the more determined she becomes to find a way she can, sometimes making rash decisions that backfire.

I found Saffron to be a likable character. She's the person who takes extreme pride in her work, whether anyone else thinks its important or not. Throughout the process of trying to locate the missing fairies, she always has her goal of being a fantastic fairy godmother strong in her mind. She also goes out of her way for her clients even when she doesn't have to.

The office politics didn't always pull me in, but I've also never worked in a formal office setting (teacher here!) so I'm willing to concede that the disconnect there might simply be my own lack of experience. I did appreciate that the office bullies were rounded out as the story progressed.

If I had any complaint about the book, it would be that I would have liked for the mystery of the vanished fairies to be more of a mystery--subtle clues for me to pick up and piece together. Especially since finding the fairies drives the majority of the plot. But Wishful Thinking is really more about Saffron's struggle to fit in, her identity crisis in relation to what job she truly wants, and how far she's willing to go for her goals. When information relevant to the disappearances does come up in conversation, there's usually some hand-waving that cues the reader in. Often one character will chide another for going off-topic. Not everything I thought would be important later ultimately was, but I did guess what happened to the fairies pretty early on.

The humor was refreshing, and I laughed aloud (or at least snickered) several times during the book. Overall, it is absolutely worth a try. If you fall in love with Saffron on the first few pages, you'll be hooked for the whole book. Ultimately, the story is less about solving a mystery and more about Saffron growing in her determination and perseverance, regardless of what others tell her.

I loved the Slouch Witch series, but didn't click with one of the author's other books, so I was hoping this would be similar to Slouch Witch and thankfully it was. Helen Harper's UF books are like a breath of fresh air in the UF genre. Her world building is inventive, and her heroines are always just slightly different from the usual, irreverent yes, but always with an undertone of kindness and caring, as well as a determination to see the problem through and solve it, no matter what the cost may be personally.

In Wishful Thinking, our heroine, Saffron, is a "dope" fairy. Her job is to ease the trips of drug addicts when they are high by making their visions pleasant(or at least not horribly scary), so that they don't hurt themselves, don't move on to more damaging drugs, and potentially even get them into rehab at some point. Although her magic department is disparaged in the magic world, she's proud of the work she does, gives it her all, and is the top performer in her group. Still, she's always dreamed of being a fairy godmother and has applied to that elite department 3 times already. The problem is that most slots there are filled by nepotism and by offspring of "prominent" fairy families and Saffron is just an ordinary fairy with an ordinary background.

At the beginning of the book, Saffron is unexpectedly presented with an opportunity to join the fairy godmothers. She's over the moon excited and determine to be the best godmother out there, but she quickly learns that all is not well in the department and that the reason for hiring her had nothing to do with her skills, and everything to do with her relative expendability. In the course of the book, she needs to solve a mystery relating to the kidnapping of other godmothers, deal with bullying and workplace harassment, and while in the middle of all of this, a bit of romance starts to bloom between her and a powerful fairy who is also investigating the kidnapping. I loved Saffron's positive attitude and can-do spirit, even while shaking my head at the way she often jumped into situations and shot off her mouth without thinking first. The other characters were interesting, the pace of the book was good, and I'm hooked and can't wait for the next book.

Hilariously wicked, this novel focuses on the struggling faery godmother Saffron Sawyer. Finally given the chance to have the job of her dreams, Saffron's plans are derailed at the realization that a conspiracy plot abounds and she's the only person who can stop it. A riot from beginning to end, the novel does a good job of balancing witty dialogue with honestly emotional moments and Saffron shines as a character. Truly a gem of a novel!


A special thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a free advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Wishful Thinking by Helen Harper can be classified as an urban fantasy and as a supernatural suspense novel. It is the first book in a new series by this author and is set in the UK.

Our protagonist, Saffron Sawyer, is a dope faery (the lowest job classification for faeries), but she aspires to be a Faery Godmother which is viewed as an elite position and is often hereditary. Surprisingly, Saffron is given the opportunity to become a Faery Godmother. With this premise, the story is off and running.

Saffron wants to be the best Faery Godmother ever, but the real situation makes this difficult. While this is a fantasy, it deals with some deeper topics ranging from bullying to deceit to nepotism to drugs to kidnappings. Saffron is determined to prevent any more kidnappings.

This novel is original, has a superb heroine, and a great set of secondary characters. There are some twists and turns, a mystery, a little comedy and even a little romance. (By the way, a drug faerie works to keep their clients from moving on to more dangerous drugs and, if possible, get them to go into rehab).

This is a relatively fast-paced novel and I thoroughly enjoyed it except that there was some excessive swearing in it that I felt detracted from the storyline. If that had been eliminated, it would have been a 5 star rating for me. This is a great start to a new series and I look forward to book two.

Many tanks to Harperfire, BookBuzz.net, Helen Harper and Net Galley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way.

Release date: 08/26/2019
Review published on NetGalley and Goodreads: 07/24/2019.
Review to be added on Amazon and Books-a-Million upon release.
Review to be added to Bookbub.com when book is added there. Posted 7/27/2019.

Great Story about a Fairy who solves a crime. A bitt of action, a bit of friendship, a bit of love. I m looking forward to the next book.

This was lot of fun to read! It's engrossing and entertaining, the characters are well written and the plot keeps you hooked till the end.
I appreciated the style of writing and the humor.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

The description drew me in from my usual cozy mysteries and I was not disappointed. Who wouldn't wish for a fairy godmother, this book has a bit of everything and is a completely enchanting read, Looking forward to more in this series.

***I received this book courtesy of Netgallery and Haperfire in exchange for an honest review***

I liked Saffron and enjoyed the mystery but other than that this book fell flat for me. There was something missing. I like this author and I have reread the Slouch Witch series more than twice so I don't know what it is. I'll check out the next book, I hope there is some improvement.

Wishful Thinking is an enchanting read! I don't normally read urban fantasy novels but the blurb really intrigued me with this one. Thankfully, I truly enjoyed it and am looking forward to many other novels in the series!

Helen Harper is a godsend of an author her urban fantasy is fun and interesting and so British. I love it.

Wishful Thinking focuses on Saffron, a faery who has just been given her dream job as a faery godmother only to discover five others have gone missing. As well as that the Devil's Advocate aka the top faery has taken an interest in her and is leaving her flustered.

The characters in this are fun and the different types of faery. A lot of them are dicks but because of that some of the best characters are the unexpected ones and I like that. The romance between Saffron and Jasper was good but if could've done with a little more build up. There was some great flirting though.

Plotwise there were some good twists and you really are glued to the book. Its a short read which means if feels like it flys by but the ending leaves you hungry for more.

I really enjoyed this book. I picked it up as I seriously enjoyed her Slouch Witch series and honestly this book makes me eager to pick up some of her other work.

Check it out if you're looking for something paranormal but with a chick-lit vibe.

So much fun!

Helen Harper has done it again. I laughed my butt off and was sorry when it ended because I have to wait until at least October for my next Saffron fix

If the words Faery Godmother brings to mind images of sweet little old gray haired ladies with easy smiles and gentle words; you my friend have another thought coming.

In Helen Harper's world there are a lot faerys. A whole hierarchy of fairies. Luck faerys, rainbow faerys, a faery for any occasion. And at the top of the heap are The Faery Godmothers.

Saffron is the highest performing faery in her division, she cares for her charges and takes pride in helping them improve themselves but she dreams of more. Her fondest wish is to become a Faery Godmother.

Someone should have reminded Saffron to be careful what you wish for; because you just might get it.

You'd expect the Godmothers HQ to be a place of wonder staffed by big-hearted people whose main goal in life is to bring joy to their charges, right?

Wrong.

Imagine the crustiest bureaucracy possible. Add a cast of narcissistic debutantes with entitlement issues and the American Express Centurion cards to purchase anything their tiny little hearts desire. A stiff necked director. And a client data base that puts The Dewey Decimal system to shame and you have the basics. (for you millennial's, the dewey decimal system was the state of the art cataloging system back in the stone age before the advent of computers)

Saffron can't wait to begin her new career. But first she first must:
A) Find a way past the dragon (not a real dragon, but wouldn't that be cool?) who guards the entry.
B) Pass muster with her new co-workers (Ha! Good luck with that sweetie)
C) Make it through Orientation (Apparently it's thorough. It would be a lot easier if the tape would cooperate tho)

My money's on Saffron. She is spunky and determined, with a can-do attitude and totally would have gotten the fished up tape to work; if that ear hadn't shown up.

Yep, I said ear. Things aren't as they seem within The Faery Godmother's ranks.

That's all the set-up you are getting from me. The rest you can find out for yourself. If you are a fan of para cozies and spunky heroines who sometimes can't get out of their own way, you are going to love this book. It's a little magical. A little silly. With fun characters and a whisper of romance.

I flat out fell in love with Saffron. Circumstances do their best to crush her and she takes her lumps (and tattoos) like a professional. She doesn't let little things like uncooperative charges and vengeful creatures (no I'm not referring to her co-workers here) or hunky male superiors get in her way. I can't wait for the second one to issue. Hurry up October!

Thank you to netgalley for giving me this review copy. These are my honest thoughts.

#wishfulthinking(howtobethebestdamnfaerygodmotherintheworldordietrying)#netgalley

I generally love Helen Harper's books, but lately her writing has sort of branched out, and has become a bit silly. I know it's supposed to be a comedy, but this is one of those stories which I find too silly for my liking. Well, not so much the story, but the characters. They are likeable, but they desperately need an injection of intelligence. I had an especially hard time with Saffron, the main character. Honestly, I found her cringeworthy stupid. Sorry.

*4.5 stars*

This book was a complete and utter delight. It revolves around a witch named Saffron who goes from being a dope fairy to a fairy godmother. The whole world of fairies that Helen Harper has created is absolutely wonderful and while her being a dope fairy is a small part of narrative, I really loved it. Dope fairies are fairies that give hallucinations to drug addicts in such a way to help prevent them from doing more dangerous substances as well as to help them deal with why they started taking drugs in the first place. This was so lovely and such a brilliant idea.

The premise of the book is that fairy godmothers are being kidnapped and Saffron is put in as a fairy godmother as bait to lure out the kidnappers and along the way she joins forces with the Devil's Advocate (a position neither the reader nor Saffron entirely understand which adds to the mystery). The relationship between Saffron and the Devil's Advocate is not toxic in the slightest and it is so delightful to see how flustered they are by each other. Saffron yells at him once when he says he is not accustomed to hiding before realising that it is because he can turn invisible. It is truly such a fun dynamic.

"Wishful Thinking" is a mystery but also a comedy and also perhaps a bit of a satire on office behaviour with a bit of romance thrown in. The book also discusses prejudice against drug addicts as well as how toxic elitism can be. This was truly masterful. I would like to see more PoC and LGBT representation, but it did still address social issues so this isn't a huge deal. I honestly loved this book and I am so glad the next one is coming out in a few months.

Wishful starts right in the middle of an action scene causing me to be a bit confused. Saffron's original job could have been more clearly explained in just a sentence or two as well. I briefly thought I wouldn't finish or put it down and start something else, but I persevered and found the book quite enjoyable.

This is urban fantasy, yet, since there are fairy godmothers, it wasn't cutesy. I ended up enjoying this story about an intrepid fairy who is trying to buck the system. There were 5 or 6 typos that I noticed and the story line could have been enhanced with a bit more back story and the characters, at least the main one, more developed. Still, I enjoyed it enough to be interested in reading the next one and to read Harper's contributions to some boxed sets I bought.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC.

I loved the non-traditional ways in which faeries are portrayed in this title, it’s both clever and fun.

When we’re introduced to Saffron at the beginning of the story she’s a Dope Faerie (yes, you read that correctly) who takes pride in steering her clients away from hard drugs and, where possible, off of drugs altogether...

Shortly thereafter Saffron is offered the opportunity to become a Faerie Godmother; the epitome of all things Faerie and Saffron’s dearest wish - until she discovers what Faerie Godmothers are really like! Can you say, “Mean girls”?

Meanwhile faeries are disappearing and Saffron decides it’s up to her to solve the case.

A fun read, I’m hoping that there will be some heavy duty copy-editing to fix typographical errors so that the book will go from the 3.5 stars I’m currently rating it at, to 4 stars.

Surprising, unpredictable, and fun! Complex interesting characters, relatable workplace interactions, hot guys, and capable women.

I received a free copy of WISHFUL THINKING (Book 1 of How to be the Best Damn Faery Godmother in the World or Die Trying) by Helen Harper in exchange for an honest review. Saffron Sawyer is the best Dope Faery she can possibly be; she is serious about keeping her charges happy so they never move on to more dangerous drugs. When Saffron’s promoted to being a Faery Godmother, all of her friends and co-workers feel it’s well-earned. Saffron soon learns that Faery Godmothers are a bunch of unwelcoming snots who feel that bloodline rather than merit is the only criteria for worthiness. Saffron also discovers that someone has been kidnapping Faery Godmothers, and she’s only been hired so she can be disposable bait for the kidnapper. Well, Saffron’s just going to have to prove she’s the best Faery Godmother by finding the kidnapper, rescuing the taken, and granting meaningful wishes to all of her charges. In the meantime, Faery’s intimidating investigator, called the Devil’s Advocate, seems to be rather attractive, doesn’t he?

As indicated by the series title, this book is rife with profanity. The story was engaging and action-packed. I liked it and recommend it to those who enjoy urban fantasy with a slight romantic element and don’t mind coarse language.

#WishfulThinking #NetGalley

I didn't finish this book. The main character is the most sugary sweet, chipper and perky person. She grated on my nerves. I read quite a bit into it hoping she would get serious about what she is doing. She didn't. The story itself is a good premise and I would have kept reading but the character is so sweet my teeth hurt.