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katiequack's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Miscarriage, and Sexual assault
bookcheshirecat's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
3.0
“The stories write us, you see. We read something that moves us, touches us, speaks to us and it…it changes us.”
➽ The Wishing Game sounded so whimsical and magical, but in the end, I expected a bit more from it. I really liked the premise as we follow a young woman called Lucy, who participates in a game hosted by her favorite author. Jack Masterson wrote the famous Clock Island books but stopped writing for years. Now he's back with a new book and the four contestants have a chance of winning the only copy. I love books about books, so I loved getting to see the impact the Clock Island books had. For many kids they were like a safe haven, Lucy included, who grew up in a neglectful household.
➽ My favorite part of the book was the riddles and visiting Jack Masterson's home, an island reminiscent of the book series' main setting. I wish the game had started earlier, as it takes about 40-50% of the story to get to that point. I feel like the competition could have been a bigger focus, as it initially caught my interest. The first riddle was intriguing, but afterwards, we were simply told that they'd competed in the other games without seeing any of them. The final game was honestly a letdown, as it had nothing to do with cleverness or skill.It's literally 5 minutes to call someone and have them read you the words on a specific Clock Island book page. How is that a riddle or test of skill? In the end, no one gets it right because the time runs out, which feels like such a joke to me.
➽ For the most part I liked Lucy, a 26-year-old kindergarten teacher's aide who hopes to adopt a little boy called Christopher. She's trying to give him a loving home but has trouble saving up the money and getting a proper apartment/car for them. I understood why the social worker was sceptical, since Lucy's still living with college-aged people and doesn't have her own apartment. However, I could also understand Lucy's frustration that the system penalized anyone who is too poor. I liked how Lucy and Christopher connected to each other via the Clock Island books, but I felt like she was too intense about him at times. I know she cares about him, but she's calling herself his mother when by this time, she's still his teacher!
➽ I wasn't a fan of how Lucy's sister was handled. She was a sick, immuno-compromised kid and therefore got more attention while Lucy was neglected. However, Lucy still blames Angie for her childhood trauma, even though it was her parents who mistreated them. She doesn't even consider Angie's perspective and only finds out how she felt much later. Sure Angie said something hurtful in the past, but it didn't justify Lucy's years-long resentment, especially as she knew how sick her sister was. Parts of this felt so ableist and it annoyed me how Lucy made everything about herself. The ending also rubbed me the wrong way.Just when the sisters have reconciled, Angie falls ill again and only has a couple of months left to live. Lucy finally forgives her and includes her in her life again. I don't know why the author thought it would be a good idea to essentially use her disabled character to further the protagonist's character development only for them to die in the end.
➽ My favorite part of the book was the riddles and visiting Jack Masterson's home, an island reminiscent of the book series' main setting. I wish the game had started earlier, as it takes about 40-50% of the story to get to that point. I feel like the competition could have been a bigger focus, as it initially caught my interest. The first riddle was intriguing, but afterwards, we were simply told that they'd competed in the other games without seeing any of them. The final game was honestly a letdown, as it had nothing to do with cleverness or skill.
➽ For the most part I liked Lucy, a 26-year-old kindergarten teacher's aide who hopes to adopt a little boy called Christopher. She's trying to give him a loving home but has trouble saving up the money and getting a proper apartment/car for them. I understood why the social worker was sceptical, since Lucy's still living with college-aged people and doesn't have her own apartment. However, I could also understand Lucy's frustration that the system penalized anyone who is too poor. I liked how Lucy and Christopher connected to each other via the Clock Island books, but I felt like she was too intense about him at times. I know she cares about him, but she's calling herself his mother when by this time, she's still his teacher!
➽ I wasn't a fan of how Lucy's sister was handled. She was a sick, immuno-compromised kid and therefore got more attention while Lucy was neglected. However, Lucy still blames Angie for her childhood trauma, even though it was her parents who mistreated them. She doesn't even consider Angie's perspective and only finds out how she felt much later. Sure Angie said something hurtful in the past, but it didn't justify Lucy's years-long resentment, especially as she knew how sick her sister was. Parts of this felt so ableist and it annoyed me how Lucy made everything about herself. The ending also rubbed me the wrong way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Grief
chronic_listener's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Cancer and Miscarriage
haileyhardcover's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The Wishing Game is perfection. A perfect blend of heartbreak and hope, wit and whimsy. I laughed, I cried. I raced to solve riddles and braved my own fears. I had so much fun on Clock Island.
I love stories that make you fall even more in love with stories. Books have been such an important part of my life, and I love when authors not only acknowledge what books mean to us, but write whole new stories just to honor and celebrate them! Who would we be without the books we’ve loved? I don’t care to know the answer.
The Wishing Game is like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory but for adults whose inner child is ready to come out. For a book set in the “real world” without any actual magic, it felt like I was reading a fantasy. Clock Island truly felt magical and is certainly a place where wishes do come true if you’re brave enough to ask.
I connected to this story personally on so many levels. You know a book was meant to find you when, halfway through, you’re already thinking about getting quotes and images tattooed on your body forever, because having them branded into your heart just isn’t enough.
The Wishing Game is perfectly paced and easy to binge-read if that’s your thing. It’s a quick read at just under 300 pages. Most of the chapters are quite short and even the longer ones move quickly enough that you don’t notice the difference. If you appreciate a good floppy paperback like I do, the publisher nailed this one - so easy to break in and then lays flat like a dream even from the first page! Also the cover?! Stunning! No notes.
In short, I highly, highly recommend The Wishing Game.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, and Outing
kjazz20's review
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
This book was a beautiful story of hope and hardship and how those two tug at each other so often. It is about wishes and bravery. But above all else, this is a story about love in its purest form. Love is the thread that connects each character and storyline. Love is actually the prevailing protagonist of “The Wishing Game.”
The real, life lessons of this story were wrapped in a playful and whimsical tale whose world was a joy to step into. It is artfully and beautifully written, telling the story of a teacher trying to save a child and a writer trying to save the world. Its whimsy reminded me a little of “The House by the Cerulean Sea.”
Sometimes books -like people- find us when we need them. I’m glad this book found me.
The real, life lessons of this story were wrapped in a playful and whimsical tale whose world was a joy to step into. It is artfully and beautifully written, telling the story of a teacher trying to save a child and a writer trying to save the world. Its whimsy reminded me a little of “The House by the Cerulean Sea.”
Sometimes books -like people- find us when we need them. I’m glad this book found me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Grief
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual assault
apandabearcub's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
lizzymorang's review
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I did find myself wanting to return to this story and it's quite an easy read, but there are just so many issues that weren't handled well. Almost every relationship dynamic in this book is weird and even inappropriate in some cases.
I was hoping the protagonist would see how wrong she was by the end and become redeemable, but this just seems like wish fulfillment for selfish, naive people. Not for me.
I was hoping the protagonist would see how wrong she was by the end and become redeemable, but this just seems like wish fulfillment for selfish, naive people. Not for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse and Sexual assault
cheriejanette's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
4.5
What a feel good story! I loved this, and I even got a bit teary eyed 🥺🥹
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Child death, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
garnethalo's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
For everyone who had a favorite author as a kid, this book explores the relationships with the books that defined us. A wonderful story that had me turning every page eagerly.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Drug use, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
madelynowil's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Abandonment