World Tour Stellar Reading Challenge – Australia
4.25/5 As I looked for a book set in Australia, a most stellar Gnomie mentioned With Love from Wish & Co. by Australian author Minnie Darke. This sounded excellent — a rom-com sort of read from a new-to-me author.
Learn more about these 2023 SRC by clicking here.
Click here to discover more about 2024 SRC.
“A heartwarming novel about what we are prepared to give–and give up–in the name of love, from the author of Star-Crossed and The Lost Love Song.… 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?”
With Love from Wish & Co made my top reads of 2023 list. I enjoyed getting to know Marnie and Luke and felt as though I was reading a movie in which I cast the actors. Also, I found it a bonus that I had to look up some Aussie terms because this transported me to the Land Down Under. Darke created a novel with some meat to it. Yes, I mostly delighted in reading the book but With Love from Wish & Co yielded some food for thought. Along with some of the characters, I wondered about the ethics of gift-giving. As some other reviewers wrote, I, too, found some parts lagging and I had little interest in reading about Leona, the mistress’ point of view. I imagine, however, other readers wanted to know her side of things. Overall, I enjoyed With Love from Wish & Co.
Click here to read the Starry Says Episode on my 2023 Top Reads.
Quotes come from book flaps/cover and are featured on color blocks.
Starry Night Elf 