What You Wish For

Description

Samantha Casey loves everything about her job as an elementary school librarian on the sunny, historic island of Galveston, Texas-the goofy kids, the stately Victorian building, the butterfly garden. But when the school suddenly loses its beloved principal, it turns out his replacement will be none other than Duncan Carpenter-a former, unrequited crush of Sam's from many years before. When Duncan shows up as her new boss, though, he's nothing like the sweet teacher she once swooned over. He's become stiff, and humorless, and obsessed with school safety. Now, with Duncan determined to destroy everything Sam loves about her school in the name of security-and turn it into nothing short of a prison-Sam has to stand up for everyone she cares about before the school that's become her home is gone for good.

KATHERINE CENTER is the New York Times bestselling author of seven novels, including Things You Save in a Fire and How to Walk Away. Katherine has been compared to Nora Ephron and Jane Austen. The Dallas Morning News calls her stories, "satisfying in the most soul-nourishing way." Katherine recently gave a TEDx talk on how stories teach empathy. Her work has appeared in USA Today, InStyle, Redbook, People, The Atlantic, Real Simple, and more. She lives in Houston with her husband and two kids.

Praise for What You Wish For: One of: People's Book of the week Refinery29's 17 Brand New 'Beach' Reads For Summer 2020 Parade's Best Beach Reads of 2020 Real Simple's Best Books of 2020 PopSugar's 30 Best New Books to Dive Into This Summer She Reads' Best Beach Reads of Summer 2020 "This charming, often lighthearted novel touches on serious issues and celebrates the power of joy to trump fear and despair." --People [A] fast-paced tale steeped with whimsical plot points. This is one for the beach bag. -- Publishers Weekly The story's message, that people should choose joy even (and especially) in difficult and painful times, seems tailor-made for this moment. A timely, uplifting read about finding joy in the midst of tragedy, filled with quirky characters and comforting warmth.--Kirkus (starred review) Katherine Center excels at writing gentle, beautifully crafted romances.-- PopSugar "What You Wish For is a bona fide explosion of happiness packaged in book form. A compassionate story of grief and resilience, What You Wish For is also a vital reminder that joy is not just something that happens to us but also something we have the power to choose... Center has created for her readers a quirky confection that celebrates life in all its imperfect glory and delivers a much-needed dose of optimism." -- Bookpage What You Wish For has Center's signature sprightly style and is a bubbly tonic to chase away the blues. --Augusta Chronicle