I would say this book is a 4.5 leaning towards a 5, which is great for a debut author. The cover is so good and it has a great concept. It is also a friends-to-lovers romance, which is one of my favorite tropes. I read this one in about a day because I couldn't put it down and it sucked me in right from the beginning. I think it did feel a little long towards the middle-end of the book and I wish it had been a tad less angsty, but overall it was very solid and I look forward to reading more from this author!

I WISH YOU WOULD is a charming and emotional debut young adult romance from Eva Des Lauriers. The two main characters are incredibly likable and sympathetic, if flawed in the way that all teenagers are. The "this whole thing could be resolved if they'd just talk" trope is strong here, but it's perfectly believable given the characters' deep friendship, their prom night encounter, and the various situations with their families and with their classmates at Senior Sunrise. The balance between how all the characters treat each other with varying cruelty and compassion rings so true for high school, and I love how the writing leans into big, gushy emotions.

This book is perfect for fans of You’ve reached Sam, and If he has been with me. After their prom they decide to enact their pact that they would be each other’s first if they were single by prom, and after second thoughts and she bolts they end up going their own ways for the summer. After spending a weekend for a senior retreat before graduation, she writes down her fears and places it in a jar to burn, but only after she places her letter in the jar that she realizes she doesn’t want a specific person to know her fear, only when she tries to reclaim her letter it ends with her spreading the letters to the wind. Her and her friend gather all of them but 7 notes. After a lot of self growth they both realize what it is what they really want out of life and that they need to go after what they want and not what people expect of them.
🔹Dual POV
🔹He falls first

DNF, mostly for personal reasons. Book’s got an interesting premise, but it’s a little too heavy on the exposition dumping, especially for a contemporary. I’d like to try and revisit this when I’m in a better headspace.

Call this book Humpty Dumpty because 'I Wish You Would' BROKE me and put me back together again. The perfect second chance YA romance.

The book was a little cliched but you know what? It worked. I did not like how hard it leaned into the miscommunication trope. JUST LET CHARACTERS COMMUNICATE PLEASE!

A fun summery read for the beach. I enjoyed reminiscing about the complications of high school romances through the two main characters in this book. Remember how difficult everything was when you were a teen with a crush? This novel will take you right back to those painfully difficult days. I enjoyed the character development and the setting was especially fun. What a great idea for a senior year memory maker!

I would give this to any 15-18 year old library patron who is looking for a contemporary young adult with a romance centered plot. I felt like it touched a lot of great YA notes - solid side characters and a compelling plot.

This was a cute book. I did feel that it was slow at times. I’m not the biggest fan of miscommunication trope but it did work here since this was a YA novel!

Thank you Macmillan for the eARC!

I really struggled with the pacing and the structure of this book. I tried giving it time to fix itself, but the back and forth POVs really slowed down the pacing.

Also, I feel like we get a lot of reveals within the first few chapters and I think this novel as a whole would benefit from a restructuring.

Not for me, but this could definitely be for someone!!

Thank you Henry Holt and Co. and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Senior Sunrise is the kickoff of Natalia and Ethan’s senior year in HS, but it also represents the first time seeing each other after being separated all summer after their long-time friendship was put to the test. Now awkward is the norm and guilt and secrecy plague the exchanges of the once very close friends.
When anxiety riddled Natalia starts making one mistake after another, Ethan will be the one by her side offering his never wavering unconditional help and they will be forced to face the truth.
I found this story beautiful and profound. Filled with teenage angst and drama, is a tale about finding yourself and facing the reality surrounding you no matter how painful. The characters are full of the hope for the future and reading about those hopes and the choices they make made me feel the melancholy of a time long gone.
The book is touching and one of the best young adult stories I’ve read in a while, totally moving and one can only hope others can feel it too.

3.5⭐️

every thought i had about this book literally flew out of my head the minute i started typing. idk what to tell you.

there’s a HEAVY miscommunication trope in this book and i was so frustrated with it and mentally SCREAMING at natalia and ethan to JUST FUCKING TALK. their problems would literally be solved if they just talked. but yk. teenagers.

i’m not really understanding how natalia didn’t think art was a career option..? like yes, she thought her dad would force her to give up art forever, but there’s no way she didn’t see other people on the internet pursuing art as a career and didn’t think “i want to do that”?

This book was such a gem and I and I am so happy to have discovered it.

“As soon as I read your letter, everything just made sense. You two have always had this...snow globe thing. Like, your own magical world. Everyone else can see it, but you’re so deep in it, you can’t. I’m just shaking the snow for you.”

This is friends-to-lovers done SO WELL. This book has easily launched itself into being one of my favorites! From the first page, I was swept up in the magic and romance. This book captured the feelings of being a senior and on the verge of starting the rest of your life. The confusion that comes with figuring things out and wanting to put your best foot forward but not really knowing how. Despite being on the shorter side, this book is not afraid to dive into some heavy feelings and emotions and is able to tackle them with grace and care.

I fell in love with the characters really quickly and got to know them well. It easily weaves between POVs without it being a drag to read either one. This book really benefits from having both of those POVs as you got to empathize with both Natalia and Ethan, and got to know what was going on in their head. There is a maturity and growth seen in them throughout the novel that almost sneaks up on you in between some of the teenage drama moments.

This is such a sweet and summery romance novel that you don’t want to miss. It is a story that has stuck with me and that I have come to cherish.

I Wish You Would comes out on May 21st! Thank you to Netgalley, Henry Holt and Co, and Macmillan for this review copy!

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=4.5 | 😘=3 | 🤬=4 | 14/15+

summary: friends to lovers; after an almost-hookup on prom night, three(?ish?) months later the MCs have to like collaborate at this high school senior event thing? and get their lives together and admit their feelings??? and be open and honest!!!!!

thoughts: the intense miscommunication slow burn was… so much. like it’s kind of ridiculous that these two couldn’t just talk to each other from the start, but honestly it mimicked how wild and dramatic it actually felt like to be a teenager!! by the end I wasn’t frustrated, I was just rooting for them, which is cute.

so basically: adorable and emotional with very lovable characters! friends to lovers is so underrated and honestly the only trope that actually makes sense in a contemporary romance. also i think the 24 hours timeline worked very well, which is quite impressive. cute! very soft!! made me Feel Things 🥹

This book swept. me. away. I devoured it over the course of one evening/morning and oh, my. My teenage heart would have simply gone feral for this read. I loved Natalia and related to her so deeply. This is a swoony, best friends to lovers romance with gorgeous prose. I absolutely loved it!

A highly anticipated read that delivered on all the angsty YA romance fronts. There was banter, there were mistakes and miscommunications and teens just trying their dang best to survive the chaotic throes of finding their voice. There was also a lot of added depth involving the dynamics of their friend groups and families. The narrative was inclusive and raw and REAL. Ethan and Natalia’s chemistry was *chef’s kiss* and the added stakes of the missing letters on a senior trip propelled the plot and conflict. Plus the writing and voice itself was powerful. Poignant and at times poetic, at times deadpan no-BS teen and humor. Both POV’s were immersive and distinct and blended so well to heighten both the characters’ internal landscapes and their intersecting moments. I can’t wait to reread this work a second time post release day and highlight all my favorite lines.

I Wish You Would is a YA contemporary romance that explores the complexities of romance developing from a lifelong friendship and the different conflicts that can arise from it.

I thought the writing was strong and very well done. The beginning chapters are gripping. I was hooked right away. The story itself was very compelling to read, and the quick pacing helped my eyes glide over the pages. The author also did well at showing instead of telling. Vivid descriptions of all the characters made them pop off the page, and each one felt unique. There is good diversity representation in this book, including different LBGTQ characters.

I loved the narrative. It's told through first-person dual POV, and I loved seeing the story through each of the main love interests's perspectives. Our FMC Natalia was a very relatable character. I connected with her on several things. Lastly, the author included one of my favorite things in a romance novel, an epilogue. I thought it fit the story perfectly.

There are a few things I wish the author did differently. Even though this is a contemporary novel, I wish the author would've spent a little more time describing the beach setting and the world in general. Most of the book was spent at the beach. Someone should've been sun burnt by the end.

Also while I did find the romance plot to be very compelling, the constant angst did get tiring near the end. For me, the 'will they, won't they' pull part of the plot dragged on too long. I also found the use of the F-word very excessive for a YA book.

Content: references to teen drinking, excessive strong language, kissing and one off screen sex scene

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book was my favorite read of the year so far! Eva has an incredible talent for emotional depth and intriguing chemistry between her characters. I devoured this read and can't wait to read it again!

I wanted to like this book. I love the concept of writing down anonymous wishes or hopes and then letting them go into the universe. The main characters Natalie and Ethan in this book are very realistic, yet the amount of miscommunication that they have throughout the entire book, got to be so repetitive that I kept getting taken out of the story. I don’t think this type of teen romance is quite my cup of tea. While it is more realistic than a typical romance story, for two people who are best friends I would hope they could communicate better. Overall, this book is okay. It didn’t wow me or make me really excited for the overall romance.
Thank you so much to Macmillan Children Publishing Group, Henry Holt and Co., and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

I WISH YOU WOULD by Eva Des Lauriers

👫 Friends to Lovers
🏫 Senior Year Rites & Rituals
🧠 Mental Health Rep
🎵 TSwift Nods
💔 Teenage Angst

I am absolutely smitten with this book. The writing sparkled and I found myself rooting for two completely loveable, but seriously clueless teens who just could not get themselves together. (Gosh, I love YA.) It was sweet, swoony, and planted a smile firmly on my face. The high school nostalgia was strong with this one.

Was the miscommunication a lot? Oh, it was, and I did not care. Somehow the author managed to make everything seem perfectly plausible even though it would have driven me mad in an adult novel. I'm able to dismiss the trope easily with teens, but if you aren't, you may love this one a little less. (Maybe. I still think you should give it a try.)

Minimal cursing. Closed door, implied sexual situations. I'd be fine with 8th grade and up.

This is a debut novel which is truly so impressive. I now have this author on my auto-read list because I think she'll be doing big things. So. Damn. Good. Read it now.