This was fun, light-hearted, no big surprises. Likable characters plus a few interesting takes on what is moral and what is helpful. A good summer/beach read.

A woman who is a personal gift buyer mixes up the presents designed for a man's wife and mistress, leading the gift buyer to try to help mend the rift in the man's marriage.

Do not judge this book by its cover and let it dissuade you from reading this terrific, fun novel--it is not a light, sweet holiday rom-com, but a much deeper, multi-layered story about lifelong love...and how to give great gifts!

When Marnie Fairchild, owner-operator of Wish & Co., a gift concierge service, mixes up the delivery of gifts for a customer, there are far-reaching consequences for the recipients and she risks losing her best customer, Brian Charlesworth whose wife and mistress are the intended recipients. Marnie enters into a deal with Brian to try to regain his wife's love, and against her better judgement, also falls for Brian's son, Luke, along the way.

The story poses questions about what you would be willing to sacrifice for someone you love, what the meaning of a gift truly is, and what you would be willing to forgive in a partner. I liked the characters very much, even cheating Mr. Charlesworth, and was rooting for the success of the scheme. The ethical questions that Luke introduces are interesting to think about, and most of all, I was motivated to up my gift-giving game!

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine for the opportunity to read a digital ARC of With Love from Wish & Co. The opinions in this review are my own.

A story of complicated relationships. Marnie is the main character of the story. Her life intersects with the others in a positive or negative way. She is a businesswoman looking to expand. The story is told in a reflective voice from the voice of several characters. It personalizes the story and helps to keep track of the plot. It is also a romance story between Marnie and Luke as well as Luke’s parents. Each couple is experiencing different things but it all leads to a happily ever after.

Marnie Fairchild runs Wish & Co., a unique boutique specializing in gift-giving. Most of her clients are wealthy with busy, complicated lives, and Marnie is here to help.

Marnie’s biggest client is Brian Charlesworth. Brian has been using Marnie’s gift services for his children, his wife and his mistress. Lately, Marnie has had a lot on her mind, as she is hoping to buy the building that once housed her grandfather’s store. In all this, she switches the gifts for Brian’s wife and mistress!


Marnie feels awful and wants to try to make amends. In the middle of this mess, Marnie meets Luke, Brian’s adult son, whom she has bought many a gift for over the years. Luke, hurt that his dad never really picked out a gift for him, realizes Marnie’s skills may come in handy in helping him connect with a daughter he never knew he had.

​​𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐖𝐢𝐬𝐡 & 𝐂𝐨 is a fun book with a unique plot. I’m not sure I’ve read a book before with the main character as a professional gift-giver. The mix-up of gifts opens up the storyline, allowing for generational love stories. You’ve got flawed, selfish characters and some big-hearted ones, so it’s interesting to see them develop.

Thank you @penquinrandomhouse for the gifted ebook by @minniedarke and @PRHaudio for the audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley, Minnie Darke, and Random House Publishing-Ballantine for the ARC to read and give my honest review.

Marnie Fairchild is owns a personalized gift shopping and wrapping store, where she buys gifts for her customers loved ones. However, she mixes one up and it causes a big disruption in Brian's life. She cannot afford to lose Brian as a customer as she wants to purchase her grandfather's old business front. Can she Marnie detangle the mess she created with Brian's life while also falling for his son, Luke?

It took me a little bit to get into this story, but once I did I was hooked. I liked all the different POV's, reading Marnie's story and trying to make her business grow. I liked that we got all the different point of views from everyone involved in the story. I felt sometimes like the book was trying too hard, but overall I really enjoyed the book and loved reading it.

This is a delightful romance between Marnie and Luke that comes about due to a rare mistake on her part. Otherwise they most likely would have never met. She runs a gift buying and wrapping business and figures out just the right gifts to send for her clients. How she goes about it really got me thinking about my own gift giving. He is a wood worker who makes custom furniture. They have similar interests and quickly fall in love. Of course, there is a secret that eventually comes out and I really liked how the author worked it all out.

For me, as an American, part of the fun of reading this book was figuring out the Australian terms. I will definitely be looking up other books of hers to read.

I received a free copy of this book to review through NetGalley and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Another enjoyable read from Minnie Darke, whose novels are sweet on the surface with a deep emotional center. A fantastic read for fans of women's fiction and romance.

When professional gift buyer. Marnie accidentally mixes up a gift for one of her client's girlfriends and his wife, her gift-buying business almost goes up in smoke along with her desire to purchase the historic storefront that her grandfather once owned. She makes a deal to help her client win back his wife, but when she meets and falls for his son who doesn't know that she's working with his father things get complicated. This is an irresistibly charming story about love, family, and forgiveness. The characters are multifaceted, and the story is charming. Overall, it's just a lovely book.

With Love From Wish & Co. by Minnie Darke
4 stars
Closed door
Pub date: 8/16

Marnie Fairchild owns Wish & Co., a boutique shop that offers gift wrapping and gift buying services for people who are too busy to shop for their loved ones. One such person is Brian, a wealthy customer who Marnie has been shopping for for five years. When a mix up is made and Brian’s wife accidentally receives a gift meant for his mistress, Marnie has to think on her feet and offer to help him get his wife back through the art of gift giving. Things get more complicated when Marnie starts a relationship with Brian’s son, Luke, who feels conflicted about Marnie’s business.

I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this one but I ended up really liking it! I think the gift buyer angle was a really clever and unique premise and I enjoyed watching that storyline play out. The story is told from multiple POV’s so we get a clear picture of how everyone is dealing with the fallout of the gift mix up.

This is really two love stories in one: one that is just starting out and one that has lasted for forty years. I could relate to both Marnie and Suzanne in this case, and I loved how the author really made me feel the emotions from both of them.

I enjoyed Darke’s writing style; it’s very descriptive and I thought the pacing of the story was perfect. This story has it all: romance, infidelity, secrets and imperfect families. It explores the idea that gift giving should be a personal gesture that proves you really know the person you’re buying for, while others argue that it’s really the thought that counts.

It’s lighthearted while dealing with heavier topics and also so easy to read that I finished it in a day. I can’t wait to read more of this author’s works. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing-Ballantine for the arc to read and review.

I loved this book so much! The writing was beautiful, the story was unique, the characters were written so well. I read it in 2 days because I just didn’t want to put it down.

I liked Marnie for how ambitious she was and I understood why getting the building was so important to her to keep that family memory going. I also loved Luke for how sweet he was, especially with Ivy. The story was like a warm hug and one of my favorite rom-com/women’s fiction stories this year.

Thanks NetGalley and Random House-Ballantine for access to this ARC available on 8/16.

This is my first read by Minnie Drake and I really enjoyed it!  There is romance, obviously, but also secrets, family dynamics, and strong character development.  I loved Marnie’s job, a gift giving service that is fun and creative, and also her thoughtfulness and tenacity.  The different character's POV and how they were all woven together really added to the story.   This is the perfect light-hearted read and reminded me a lot of a Hallmark movie! 

4.2 stars!

Thank you @netgalley and @randomhouse for the early copy

We are told not to judge a book by it's cover, but that is not a realistic approach. With Love from Wish & Co has a comic type drawing that depicts a gift with a male and a female on each side. This tells me that this is a romance novel where everything will wrap up happily in the end. A different cover would direct the reader to make contradictory assumptions. This is a romance, but it is more than the standard romance. The elements of Darke's story that set it apart are the family history of both parts of the main couple, as well as the situation that brings them together involving his parents. The tension that threatens to drive the primary lovers apart is handle well and resolved satisfactorily. About half way through this book I looked to see if Minnie Darke has any other published works and she has two that were immediately added to my "to be read" list. Publishes just in time to enjoy as a summer read if you get to it quickly.

First off, thank you to Minnie Drake, Dell, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a Kindle ARC of this book.

This is my first book by this Australian author. It was a nice read and a perfect beach read. It was light and just what I needed after several heavier books and the pandemic. It is the ROM-COM that I normally don't read, but I am glad that I did!

RECOMMEND

💔Come on, give them another chance! Heartwarming😍

I really, really loved this story, mainly thanks to Marnie, the warm and perceptive, hard-working dreamer at the center. She's the kind of underdog heroine that you just can't abandon. But all of the principal and secondary characters were good (well, maybe Owen is a bit of an unrepentant cad), and well fleshed out. It was a true treat reading Minnie Darke's novel about the power of second chances, both for the giver and receiver, no matter their age. I loved The Lost Love Song, but thought this novel was just as wonderful.

Though the story is set in Australia I don't think the city, state or country is mentioned once so it's easy to imagine this happening almost anywhere. Helps make the story more universal. The romance is sweet, with some really lovely gestures and memory-making moments.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group/Dell and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

Marnie Fairchild is a personal shopper specifying in gifts for peoples loved ones. But when a gift mix up happens between a customers wife and mistress, Marnie is worried her dream of moving her business to her grandparents old store may go up in smoke. She can't afford to lose a client, nevertheless multiple who were there to witness the mishap. Can Marnie detangle the mess between Brian and his wife? And when his son Luke gets involved, their attraction is palpable. Can Marnie have a relationship with Luke, fix Brian's marriage and get the building of her dreams?

I loved the concept of this book but I just found it so hard to concentrate on. I felt like it was just too flowery and a little too long. Maybe one too many storylines. I also never knew who the narrator was following until a name was finally read. I felt like it could have easily been fixed by putting the character name at the top of each section. I also couldn't figure out where this town was? Was it a city? Where was it located? Lastly, I felt like Marnie and Luke's relationship went from 0-60 in a blink of an eye. I felt like this book needed to focus more on the gift drama or the relationship and pare down some of the sub plots.

I did however love the moral questioning of Marnie's job and how, if at all, she was responsible for the events that took place.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review. This book releases 8/16

I feel like this book could have had a lot of potential but it just wasn’t for me. I couldn’t really connect with any of the characters or the storyline. I would definitely give other books by this author a chance.

Thank you Ballantine Random House and NetGalley for the review copy of With Love from Wish & Co. I enjoyed this read! I will admit it is predictable but it is also light and charming and sometimes that is just what a book wants to be; I feel Ms. Darke achieved the goal of a relatable and escapist book and I appreciate that after a busy few weeks I had such a read available. :) Even if I felt the tropes were ones that feel familiar, I sometimes like a book that feels familiar and easy to engage with. My rating is 3.5 stars, as I think this book could have dug in more about women's lives and themes noted below.

What I really wanted to note was that the focus on Marnie and the mistake she makes. Women.... we feel so much pressure to have to be perfect and never make a mistake and be on and always apologizing and while in this book the mistake sets up the rest of the story (and it was a business person making a mistake that caused a customer problem) I also think moments like this in books have a hidden important value: women make mistakes and maybe it's not our fault that this sets up a series of unfortunate challenges for someone who wasn't that great or was doing hurtful behaviors, Marnie wasn't responsible for managing Brian's affair and his marriage per se. This is worth talking about! So talk about it! :)

With such a cute premise, I was slightly disappointed with this one.

I really enjoyed Marnie’s character and what she did for a living. Who would ever think to hire a personal gift buyer? Her dilemma was completely realistic, which I can appreciate. The way she ends up questioning her own morals was so refreshing.

So, while I loved the characters and the storyline. This book simply went on forever. Things could have wrapped up much quicker.

But just because this wasn’t for me, doesn’t mean anything. It had such great potential that anyone could fall in love with it.

Cute, delightful, light-hearted rom-com. A perfect summer read. A bit predictable, but the character of Marnie kept it enjoyable.

"Two boxes, both alike in size and shape . . .

Marnie Fairchild is the brains and talent behind Wish & Co., a boutique store that offers a bespoke gift-buying service to wealthy clients with complicated lives. Brian Charlesworth is Marnie's most prized customer, and today she's wrapping the perfect anniversary gift for his wife, Suzanne . . . and a birthday present for his mistress, Leona. What could possibly go wrong?

For years, Marnie's had her heart set on moving Wish & Co. to the historic shopfront once owned by her grandfather. When the chance to bid for the property unexpectedly arises, Marnie--distracted--makes an uncharacteristic mistake. Soon Brian is in a fight to rescue his marriage, and Marnie is scrabbling to keep her dreams alive. With the situation so complicated, the last thing Marnie needs is to fall for Brian and Suzanne's gorgeous son, Luke. In the end, will it be her head or her heart that wins out?"

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed herein are my own.