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Don't You Wish
What if your mom had married someone else?
Would you still be you?
When plain and unpopular Annie Nutter gets zapped by one of her dad's whacked-out inventions, she lands in a parallel universe where her life becomes picture perfect. Now she's Ayla Monroe, daughter of the same mother but a different father - and she's the gorgeous, rich queen bee of her high school.
In this universe, Ayla lives in glitzy Miami instead of dreary Pittsburgh and has beaucoup bucks, courtesy of her billionaire - if usually absent - father. Her friends hit the clubs, party backstage at concerts, and take risks that are exhilarating . . . and illegal. Here she's got a date to lose her V-card with the hottest guy she's ever seen.
But on the inside, Ayla is still Annie.
So when she's offered the chance to leave the dream life and head home to Pittsburgh, will she take it?
The choice isn't as simple as you think.
Would you still be you?
When plain and unpopular Annie Nutter gets zapped by one of her dad's whacked-out inventions, she lands in a parallel universe where her life becomes picture perfect. Now she's Ayla Monroe, daughter of the same mother but a different father - and she's the gorgeous, rich queen bee of her high school.
In this universe, Ayla lives in glitzy Miami instead of dreary Pittsburgh and has beaucoup bucks, courtesy of her billionaire - if usually absent - father. Her friends hit the clubs, party backstage at concerts, and take risks that are exhilarating . . . and illegal. Here she's got a date to lose her V-card with the hottest guy she's ever seen.
But on the inside, Ayla is still Annie.
So when she's offered the chance to leave the dream life and head home to Pittsburgh, will she take it?
The choice isn't as simple as you think.
357 pages, Hardcover
First published July 10, 2012
20 people are currently reading
4020 people want to read
About the author
Roxanne St. Claire
265 books1,832 followersI don’t know about you, but when I check out an author's bio, it’s usually because I’ve read a book I liked and wondered about the person behind it. Let's skip the formal bio and I'll give you the inside scoop on who Roxanne St. Claire really is.
First of all, call me Rocki. Everyone does. Evidently, when my mother brought me home from the hospital I seemed too scrawny and small to pull off “Roxanne” (she’d read Cyrano de Bergerac while pregnant or I would have been Judy) so they called me Rocki.
I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA, the youngest of five (overachievers, every one), and fell in love with words and stories the summer I read Gone With The Wind. That year, for my twelfth birthday, my parents gave me a typewriter (with italic font – it was the coolest thing) and from that day on, I’ve had my fingers on a keyboard, pounding out love stories for fun. My AP English teacher taught me the two most important lessons an aspiring author ever needs: 1) verbs are the key to life and 2) a writer should get a real job. After attending UCLA and graduating with a degree in communications, I tried acting and television broadcasting. Oh, they aren’t real jobs? I learned that the hard way. I changed my last name from Zink to St. Claire because a news producer told me Roxanne Zink had too many harsh consonants for a TV personality – apparently Katie Couric didn’t get the memo. I got some fun gigs, and even met Tom Hanks when I did a guest appearance on Bosom Buddies. I liked on camera work, but wasn’t too crazy about starvation, so I moved to Boston and got that “real” job. In fact, I placed my foot on the bottom rung of the corporate ladder and didn’t look down until I’d climbed all the way up to the level of Senior Vice President at the world’s largest public relations firm. On the way up, I met the man of my dreams in an elevator. Two years later – in the same elevator! – he asked me to marry him and I wisely said yes.
I stayed in PR, moved to Miami, had a few babies, lost my home in a hurricane, built another one a few hours north and all along, I kept writing my “stories” for fun. One night, I read a particularly fabulous romance novel that changed my life for good. That night, I decided I wanted to make someone else feel as whole and happy as that author made me feel. (Everyone asks! It was Nobody’s Baby But Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips.) With two small children and one big “real” job, writing my first novel wasn’t easy, but I did finish a manuscript that managed to get the attention of a literary agent. She told me to do one thing and one thing fast: write another book. (The first one is usually a “learner” book, honestly.) That second manuscript sold to Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Books and was released in 2003 as Tropical Getaway. Since then, I’ve written almost thirty more, in multiple genres, and long ago replaced the corporate ladder with the rollercoaster of publishing as a full-time novelist. Finally, writing is my real job.
Today, I live in a small beach community in Florida with my husband and two dogs. Our kids are off to college and law school, which means my nest is empty! I spend my time writing, working with the kids at my church, enjoying my husband's gourmet cooking, and hanging with my many writer friends. Of course, I love to read. I’m still crazy about words and stories and hope to write at least a hundred books in my lifetime. And, yes, verbs are the key to life. My favorites? Love. Work. Believe.
xoxo
Rocki
First of all, call me Rocki. Everyone does. Evidently, when my mother brought me home from the hospital I seemed too scrawny and small to pull off “Roxanne” (she’d read Cyrano de Bergerac while pregnant or I would have been Judy) so they called me Rocki.
I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA, the youngest of five (overachievers, every one), and fell in love with words and stories the summer I read Gone With The Wind. That year, for my twelfth birthday, my parents gave me a typewriter (with italic font – it was the coolest thing) and from that day on, I’ve had my fingers on a keyboard, pounding out love stories for fun. My AP English teacher taught me the two most important lessons an aspiring author ever needs: 1) verbs are the key to life and 2) a writer should get a real job. After attending UCLA and graduating with a degree in communications, I tried acting and television broadcasting. Oh, they aren’t real jobs? I learned that the hard way. I changed my last name from Zink to St. Claire because a news producer told me Roxanne Zink had too many harsh consonants for a TV personality – apparently Katie Couric didn’t get the memo. I got some fun gigs, and even met Tom Hanks when I did a guest appearance on Bosom Buddies. I liked on camera work, but wasn’t too crazy about starvation, so I moved to Boston and got that “real” job. In fact, I placed my foot on the bottom rung of the corporate ladder and didn’t look down until I’d climbed all the way up to the level of Senior Vice President at the world’s largest public relations firm. On the way up, I met the man of my dreams in an elevator. Two years later – in the same elevator! – he asked me to marry him and I wisely said yes.
I stayed in PR, moved to Miami, had a few babies, lost my home in a hurricane, built another one a few hours north and all along, I kept writing my “stories” for fun. One night, I read a particularly fabulous romance novel that changed my life for good. That night, I decided I wanted to make someone else feel as whole and happy as that author made me feel. (Everyone asks! It was Nobody’s Baby But Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips.) With two small children and one big “real” job, writing my first novel wasn’t easy, but I did finish a manuscript that managed to get the attention of a literary agent. She told me to do one thing and one thing fast: write another book. (The first one is usually a “learner” book, honestly.) That second manuscript sold to Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Books and was released in 2003 as Tropical Getaway. Since then, I’ve written almost thirty more, in multiple genres, and long ago replaced the corporate ladder with the rollercoaster of publishing as a full-time novelist. Finally, writing is my real job.
Today, I live in a small beach community in Florida with my husband and two dogs. Our kids are off to college and law school, which means my nest is empty! I spend my time writing, working with the kids at my church, enjoying my husband's gourmet cooking, and hanging with my many writer friends. Of course, I love to read. I’m still crazy about words and stories and hope to write at least a hundred books in my lifetime. And, yes, verbs are the key to life. My favorites? Love. Work. Believe.
xoxo
Rocki
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June 27, 2012
This review originally appeared on
Clear Eyes, Full Shelves.
When my parents moved to the United States from Korea in 1974, they originally planned on moving back to Korea after my dad’s medical residency was finished.
Instead, for various reasons, my father accepted a job at a hospital in Western New York (the same hospital where I was born,) and they remained in the US, becoming citizens in 1981.
My parents’ decision to stay in the US and raise their children in the Rust Belt has been the root of the most enduring “what if” of my life:
What if my parents had returned to Korea and I had been raised there, on that tiny peninsula on the other side of the world?
What kind of person would I be?
Would anything about my personality, my beliefs, that which I consider to be the core of my being, be the same?
Or would the difference in culture have resulted in a completely different person, unrecognizable from the person I see in the mirror everyday?
But while I find myself curious about the idea of parallel lives and universes, I am FAR too lazy to study quantum physics and the actual scientific possibilities of their existence. (Research + controlled experiments + advanced gobbledegook science = *shudder*)
So instead, I indulge in cheesy forms of entertainment that explore the idea of,
What if I was THAT person, instead of the person that I am and lived in THAT world instead of this one?
I especially adore silly, campy movies like Freaky Friday (the original Jodie Foster version AND Lindsay Lohan/Jaime Lee Curtis remake, but not so much the made-for-TV 1990’s Gaby Hoffman/Shelley Long remake), The Parent Trap (both versions), Labyrinth, and 13 going on 30.
And, if you can believe it, my love for Australian TV existed long before my discovery of the fabulosity that is Aussie YA lit in the form of the show Spellbinder, in which a teenager named Paul finds himself transported to and trapped in a regressed, parallel version of Australia and must find a way to get back to his version of the world.
So I was of course full of glee when I learned of Don't You Wish, Roxanne St. Claire’s first foray into the YA category after a prolific career as an adult romantic suspense novelist.
I rubbed my hands together in giddy anticipation and had my checklist of Requirements for Campy, Body-Switching Storylines at the ready as I queued up the galley on my Kindle.
A teenager who needs to be taught a lesson or is suffering from an unfair punishment, humiliation from which he/she will NEVER EVER RECOVER, and/or parents who just don’t understand.
A wish or daydream about ideal circumstances, usually involving wealth, popularity, and zero work
A magical or zany scientific fulfillment of said wish that cannot be mimicked in a lab but just happens to work for that one moment for that one teenager, usually while said teenager is asleep.
Utter confusion, then childish glee when teenager wakes up and discovers his/her new circumstances.
Hijinks as the teenager fumbles and faux-pas through their new circumstances and somehow manages to transform his/her flubs into kooky triumphs that result in increased popularity.
Disappointment as teenager realizes that the grass isn’t always greener in the other universe.
Homesickness for original universe
An attempt to find someone in new universe that will not think teenager is a complete loon AND can help return teenager to original universe.
Scary/emotional moment where teen believes he/she will never be able to get home and will be stuck in the new universe FOREVER.
Climactic moment as teen recreates circumstances to return to original universe.
Teen confuses parents by savagely hugging them upon return and saying how much he/she missed them.
Happy ending as teen’s meets doppelganger of whoever helped them in the other universe in their original universe.
Thankfully, Roxanne St. Claire does not deviate from the cherished body-switching formula in Don’t You Wish.
The main character and narrator, Annie Nutter, is a plain, unpopular orchestra geek whose seat at the front of the school bus lends itself to her being whacked in the face by the other students’ backpacks as they turn from the stairs to the aisle. She lives in a lower-middle-class neighborhood with her constantly belching younger brother, her hoarder/nutty hobbyist inventor father, and her stressed-out real estate agent mother.
On the fateful body-switching day, Annie finds her mother crying in a Wal-Mart aisle over a magazine that features the opulent Miami home of Dr. James Monroe, her billionaire ex-boyfriend. Understandably, this leads Annie to ponder the what-ifs of her life: What if her mom had chosen James Monroe and Annie was their daughter? What kind of person would she be? And the scariest thought of all, what if her mom regrets choosing her dad and decides to get a divorce?
The convergence of these musings and her dad’s latest invention involving a mirror that reflects what you wish you looked like, rather than the reality, results in Annie getting beamed from dreary Pittsburgh to a parallel universe where she is Ayla Monroe, beautiful, wealthy beyond belief and, as she learns, the Queen Bee of her Miami high school who somehow manages to make Regina George look like Mother Theresa.
While the predictable nature of the plot would point towards a rote, mundane book, Roxanne St. Claire infuses Don’t You Wish with charm, wit, and a character who is so easy to root for in Annie Nutter.
Therefore, even though I could see where the plot was eventually going, I found myself so invested in Annie’s ensuing escapade and dilemmas. Would Annie embrace Ayla’s life as a mean girl? Or would she temper it due to her own experiences and humiliations as a nobody? Should she find a way to get back to her old life or adjust her new one?
Ultimately, I felt enamored and rewarded by Don’t You Wish as Annie goes from being a nobody, to becoming an unfamiliar somebody, to understanding that no matter what the circumstances, no matter what the pressures around her, there are portions of her life that she can and should control. I even found myself emphatically nodding in agreement as if Annie’s romantic interest, Charlie Zelinsky, was talking directly to me when he tells her,
"You might be one of the luckiest people in the world. You get to see both sides and make a choice."
Because while there are times that I ponder the what-ifs of my life, there are many more when I take control of my life’s direction, which every person, whether they are a teenager or adult, needs to learn how to do at some point. Perhaps reading Don’t You Wish, if people can get past the (charming) cheese and fluff, will help lead them there.
FNL Character Rating: Matt Saracen, when he leaves Dillon for Chicago in Season 4.
Don't You Wish will be published on July 10, 2012 and is available for preorder now.
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley; no goodies or other compensation were received in exchange for this honest review.
When my parents moved to the United States from Korea in 1974, they originally planned on moving back to Korea after my dad’s medical residency was finished.
Instead, for various reasons, my father accepted a job at a hospital in Western New York (the same hospital where I was born,) and they remained in the US, becoming citizens in 1981.
My parents’ decision to stay in the US and raise their children in the Rust Belt has been the root of the most enduring “what if” of my life:
What if my parents had returned to Korea and I had been raised there, on that tiny peninsula on the other side of the world?
What kind of person would I be?
Would anything about my personality, my beliefs, that which I consider to be the core of my being, be the same?
Or would the difference in culture have resulted in a completely different person, unrecognizable from the person I see in the mirror everyday?
But while I find myself curious about the idea of parallel lives and universes, I am FAR too lazy to study quantum physics and the actual scientific possibilities of their existence. (Research + controlled experiments + advanced gobbledegook science = *shudder*)
So instead, I indulge in cheesy forms of entertainment that explore the idea of,
What if I was THAT person, instead of the person that I am and lived in THAT world instead of this one?
I especially adore silly, campy movies like Freaky Friday (the original Jodie Foster version AND Lindsay Lohan/Jaime Lee Curtis remake, but not so much the made-for-TV 1990’s Gaby Hoffman/Shelley Long remake), The Parent Trap (both versions), Labyrinth, and 13 going on 30.
And, if you can believe it, my love for Australian TV existed long before my discovery of the fabulosity that is Aussie YA lit in the form of the show Spellbinder, in which a teenager named Paul finds himself transported to and trapped in a regressed, parallel version of Australia and must find a way to get back to his version of the world.
So I was of course full of glee when I learned of Don't You Wish, Roxanne St. Claire’s first foray into the YA category after a prolific career as an adult romantic suspense novelist.
I rubbed my hands together in giddy anticipation and had my checklist of Requirements for Campy, Body-Switching Storylines at the ready as I queued up the galley on my Kindle.
A teenager who needs to be taught a lesson or is suffering from an unfair punishment, humiliation from which he/she will NEVER EVER RECOVER, and/or parents who just don’t understand.
A wish or daydream about ideal circumstances, usually involving wealth, popularity, and zero work
A magical or zany scientific fulfillment of said wish that cannot be mimicked in a lab but just happens to work for that one moment for that one teenager, usually while said teenager is asleep.
Utter confusion, then childish glee when teenager wakes up and discovers his/her new circumstances.
Hijinks as the teenager fumbles and faux-pas through their new circumstances and somehow manages to transform his/her flubs into kooky triumphs that result in increased popularity.
Disappointment as teenager realizes that the grass isn’t always greener in the other universe.
Homesickness for original universe
An attempt to find someone in new universe that will not think teenager is a complete loon AND can help return teenager to original universe.
Scary/emotional moment where teen believes he/she will never be able to get home and will be stuck in the new universe FOREVER.
Climactic moment as teen recreates circumstances to return to original universe.
Teen confuses parents by savagely hugging them upon return and saying how much he/she missed them.
Happy ending as teen’s meets doppelganger of whoever helped them in the other universe in their original universe.
Thankfully, Roxanne St. Claire does not deviate from the cherished body-switching formula in Don’t You Wish.
The main character and narrator, Annie Nutter, is a plain, unpopular orchestra geek whose seat at the front of the school bus lends itself to her being whacked in the face by the other students’ backpacks as they turn from the stairs to the aisle. She lives in a lower-middle-class neighborhood with her constantly belching younger brother, her hoarder/nutty hobbyist inventor father, and her stressed-out real estate agent mother.
On the fateful body-switching day, Annie finds her mother crying in a Wal-Mart aisle over a magazine that features the opulent Miami home of Dr. James Monroe, her billionaire ex-boyfriend. Understandably, this leads Annie to ponder the what-ifs of her life: What if her mom had chosen James Monroe and Annie was their daughter? What kind of person would she be? And the scariest thought of all, what if her mom regrets choosing her dad and decides to get a divorce?
The convergence of these musings and her dad’s latest invention involving a mirror that reflects what you wish you looked like, rather than the reality, results in Annie getting beamed from dreary Pittsburgh to a parallel universe where she is Ayla Monroe, beautiful, wealthy beyond belief and, as she learns, the Queen Bee of her Miami high school who somehow manages to make Regina George look like Mother Theresa.
While the predictable nature of the plot would point towards a rote, mundane book, Roxanne St. Claire infuses Don’t You Wish with charm, wit, and a character who is so easy to root for in Annie Nutter.
Therefore, even though I could see where the plot was eventually going, I found myself so invested in Annie’s ensuing escapade and dilemmas. Would Annie embrace Ayla’s life as a mean girl? Or would she temper it due to her own experiences and humiliations as a nobody? Should she find a way to get back to her old life or adjust her new one?
Ultimately, I felt enamored and rewarded by Don’t You Wish as Annie goes from being a nobody, to becoming an unfamiliar somebody, to understanding that no matter what the circumstances, no matter what the pressures around her, there are portions of her life that she can and should control. I even found myself emphatically nodding in agreement as if Annie’s romantic interest, Charlie Zelinsky, was talking directly to me when he tells her,
"You might be one of the luckiest people in the world. You get to see both sides and make a choice."
Because while there are times that I ponder the what-ifs of my life, there are many more when I take control of my life’s direction, which every person, whether they are a teenager or adult, needs to learn how to do at some point. Perhaps reading Don’t You Wish, if people can get past the (charming) cheese and fluff, will help lead them there.
FNL Character Rating: Matt Saracen, when he leaves Dillon for Chicago in Season 4.
Don't You Wish will be published on July 10, 2012 and is available for preorder now.
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley; no goodies or other compensation were received in exchange for this honest review.
February 7, 2012
I did wish. Often. I wished for a new life. I wished hard. It never came. Annie Nutter stole my wish and it came true. However, like any good make-a-wish story, her wish is not turning out like she thought.
She ends up in the body (and soul) of Ayla Monroe. A girl that has it all...money, power, boyfriends, the world at her beckon call. It's everything Annie could ever dream of...or is it?
As you can see from my review, the book has a few enjoyable twists and some great life lessons in it. What would happen if your wish did come true? What would you do with everything that you lost in your so-called shitty life? What would happen if you figured out your former life wasn't as bad as you thought?
What started off as a light fun read, turned into a book with depth. I enjoyed it and loved the science fiction involved in it as well. The author balanced all the elements perfectly. Not too much light, not too much dark, not too much science... just right.
Maybe my wish came true? Maybe if I did get a different life, something horrible would have happened. You never know. Value what you have because you never know what you possibly could have gotten in a different universe!
4 out of 5 stars.
She ends up in the body (and soul) of Ayla Monroe. A girl that has it all...money, power, boyfriends, the world at her beckon call. It's everything Annie could ever dream of...or is it?
As you can see from my review, the book has a few enjoyable twists and some great life lessons in it. What would happen if your wish did come true? What would you do with everything that you lost in your so-called shitty life? What would happen if you figured out your former life wasn't as bad as you thought?
What started off as a light fun read, turned into a book with depth. I enjoyed it and loved the science fiction involved in it as well. The author balanced all the elements perfectly. Not too much light, not too much dark, not too much science... just right.
Maybe my wish came true? Maybe if I did get a different life, something horrible would have happened. You never know. Value what you have because you never know what you possibly could have gotten in a different universe!
4 out of 5 stars.
March 9, 2012
(This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley as an ARC in exchange for an honest review.)
Okay, I have a confession: I was a skeptic with this one. As much as the summary intrigued me and the cover reminded me of a girl on a TV Show I've been kind-of watching called "The Lying Game", there was a part of my brain saying it would be cheesy and bland and predictable, and that this kind of story was far too overdone in movies. But guess what? I was wrong.
Don't You Wish is an uplifting, charismatic, eye-opener of a tale that (finally) allows you have your cake and eat it too. It begins with an "invisible" socially-awkward girl named Annie who is mistreated at her school, has one best friend, and a dysfunctional family on the verge of crumbling, thanks to her Dad's hoarding invention-seeking ways and her mother's recent encounter with a magazine article about her billionare ex-boyfriend, which reminded her that she could have had it all if she had made a different decision.
The magazine article and drama surrounding her gets Annie thinking about how HER life would be different as well, if her mother had chosen the other man. With a blend of angst, a heavy lightning storm, and her Dad's latest invention, Annie gets zapped into an alternate universe where she adapts the world of Ayla, the "Queen B" of her high school. Suddenly, the unfortunate girl with braces and unwanted invisibility powers is now beautiful, rich, popular, admired and desired by many. She has everything she has ever wanted... and then some.
Some that is, well, unfortunate.
For one, two out of the three members in her family are different people. Her "mother" (the only one present in both lives) is cold and angry and distant, her "brother" is bitter and never allows her to live down Ayla's past, and her "father" is a work-a-holic with a few nasty secrets of his own. At school, she is envied and noticed, but soon discovers that life as Ayla is consuming and pressurized. She has a pushy boyfriend, friends who are more frenemies than girls you'd dare to share secrets with, and a whole lot of people expecting her to maintain their version of perfection. Annie/Ayla quickly realizes that the grass is, well, pretty bland and dead on the other side of the fence.
But with every dark cloud, there's always a rainbow waiting to peek out, and in this case, it's Charlie. Oh, Charlie. How I wish I had one of my own... With his unimpressed take on the more-fortunate in society and his adoring responsibility to his little sister that can (and will!) make any girl swoon, Charlie is the saving grace of this transformation. He's warm and understanding and open-minded. He is the outcast in the school with a complicated tragic past and the warmest heart I've read about in the longest time. His admiration for Annie/Ayla is magical and rare. He is the glue that makes everything in this story work, and work well.
And the best part? The ending. When stories are usually so good that they keep me up all night reading, I start doing this thing where I dread reaching the end, for fear that it won't work and will let me down. But in this case, that absolutely did not happen. When I finished the last page, I was smiling from ear to ear, and internally clapping and jumping around. (Note: If my husband hadn't been asleep beside me, I might have done these things out in the open. Repeatedly.)
Roxanne St. Claire has done an incredible job at taking an over-done storyline and making it brand new again. She weaves the story carefully, making sure to add all the correct elements: wit, charm, realistic characters, passion, emotion, and explanation. She provides circumstances that are easily relevant, so whether you are the invisible or the Queen-B in your own life, you understand and appreciate the bigger picture.
So if you've ever had that question of "what-if" in your life, maybe you should read this book. You just might surprise yourself on how different you feel once you've finished.
I will definitely be adding this to my "favorites" list, and am eagerly looking forward to Roxanne St. Claire's next YA novel.
~*~
You can find more of my reviews here: at my website, Behind-The-Words.net, as well as Amazon.com, Goodreads and (if ARC's) at NetGalley.
Okay, I have a confession: I was a skeptic with this one. As much as the summary intrigued me and the cover reminded me of a girl on a TV Show I've been kind-of watching called "The Lying Game", there was a part of my brain saying it would be cheesy and bland and predictable, and that this kind of story was far too overdone in movies. But guess what? I was wrong.
Don't You Wish is an uplifting, charismatic, eye-opener of a tale that (finally) allows you have your cake and eat it too. It begins with an "invisible" socially-awkward girl named Annie who is mistreated at her school, has one best friend, and a dysfunctional family on the verge of crumbling, thanks to her Dad's hoarding invention-seeking ways and her mother's recent encounter with a magazine article about her billionare ex-boyfriend, which reminded her that she could have had it all if she had made a different decision.
The magazine article and drama surrounding her gets Annie thinking about how HER life would be different as well, if her mother had chosen the other man. With a blend of angst, a heavy lightning storm, and her Dad's latest invention, Annie gets zapped into an alternate universe where she adapts the world of Ayla, the "Queen B" of her high school. Suddenly, the unfortunate girl with braces and unwanted invisibility powers is now beautiful, rich, popular, admired and desired by many. She has everything she has ever wanted... and then some.
Some that is, well, unfortunate.
For one, two out of the three members in her family are different people. Her "mother" (the only one present in both lives) is cold and angry and distant, her "brother" is bitter and never allows her to live down Ayla's past, and her "father" is a work-a-holic with a few nasty secrets of his own. At school, she is envied and noticed, but soon discovers that life as Ayla is consuming and pressurized. She has a pushy boyfriend, friends who are more frenemies than girls you'd dare to share secrets with, and a whole lot of people expecting her to maintain their version of perfection. Annie/Ayla quickly realizes that the grass is, well, pretty bland and dead on the other side of the fence.
But with every dark cloud, there's always a rainbow waiting to peek out, and in this case, it's Charlie. Oh, Charlie. How I wish I had one of my own... With his unimpressed take on the more-fortunate in society and his adoring responsibility to his little sister that can (and will!) make any girl swoon, Charlie is the saving grace of this transformation. He's warm and understanding and open-minded. He is the outcast in the school with a complicated tragic past and the warmest heart I've read about in the longest time. His admiration for Annie/Ayla is magical and rare. He is the glue that makes everything in this story work, and work well.
And the best part? The ending. When stories are usually so good that they keep me up all night reading, I start doing this thing where I dread reaching the end, for fear that it won't work and will let me down. But in this case, that absolutely did not happen. When I finished the last page, I was smiling from ear to ear, and internally clapping and jumping around. (Note: If my husband hadn't been asleep beside me, I might have done these things out in the open. Repeatedly.)
Roxanne St. Claire has done an incredible job at taking an over-done storyline and making it brand new again. She weaves the story carefully, making sure to add all the correct elements: wit, charm, realistic characters, passion, emotion, and explanation. She provides circumstances that are easily relevant, so whether you are the invisible or the Queen-B in your own life, you understand and appreciate the bigger picture.
So if you've ever had that question of "what-if" in your life, maybe you should read this book. You just might surprise yourself on how different you feel once you've finished.
I will definitely be adding this to my "favorites" list, and am eagerly looking forward to Roxanne St. Claire's next YA novel.
~*~
You can find more of my reviews here: at my website, Behind-The-Words.net, as well as Amazon.com, Goodreads and (if ARC's) at NetGalley.
July 6, 2012
THIS REVIEW ON B'S BOOK BLOG!
I received the digital ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher for review.
I slide on the sunglasses, covering my dazzling green eyes. Because this dream is so bright, I gotta wear shades.
Don't You Wish by Roxanne St. Claire tells a story of Annie Nutter, daughter of Mel and Emily Nutter, who wishes she lived a different life. When Mel comes up with a cool invention called Picture Perfect, Annie literally wakes up in the morning to a different life--the one she wishes for--in a parallel universe. Annie is now living Ayla Monroe's life which is different from her own in most ways except that she still has the same mother, but now Emily Monroe instead of Nutter. Finally living the perfect life she always wishes for, Annie finds herself missing her Nutter family more than ever.
I liked this book. It's fun. I didn't expect much in the first place so I wasn't disappointed. I really like the idea of time travel and parallel universe in this book. I used to be interested in quantum physics, too. The way they all fit together and create a plot for this story is well thought out. Although there are still some things that don't quite make sense, it doesn't affect my enjoyment because it's so much fun.
"Be careful what you wish for," I think, is what this book tries to say. We must've all been in Annie's position at least once in our lives. Sometimes we wish we were something we're not, the better version of ourselves, or someone else entirely. We wish our lives were different, we wish we had money, we wish for success and happiness. The only difference is that Annie gets it. This book explores the idea of "perfect life" really well. The way Annie's character develops throughout the story is nicely done. She goes from a nobody wishing she was a somebody, to a pretty, rich, A-list girl perfection missing her old life and family. Maybe perfection isn't all it's cracked up to be. But oh, the length people would go to achieve perfection, not knowing that maybe the price can be too high.
Another idea I really liked about this book is the "what if" and "what could've been". Sure, as human beings, we wonder all the time. What if I was born to a rich family? What if I had married a rich guy? Oh, I could've been living in that big house with so much money I wouldn't have to work for the rest of my life. These kinds of things. In this book, Annie is doing the wishing while her mother is responsible for the what-if's and what-could've-been's. I found it heart-breaking to have second thoughts when you look back at your life. The way you wish you hadn't made that decision, the way you wonder about the differences you could've made. And again, this book shows that maybe you're better off where you are now. Maybe it's all for the better.
Near the end of the book, I was so much into the story that it was so emotional. Annie is torn between two choices. Will she stay or will she go? In a way, this Ayla Monroe life is perfect. Well, maybe it's not "perfect" perfect, but it's definitely a good quality life, despite broken family and no real friendship. That Annie Nutter life, on the other hand, is full of mess but with loving family and a best friend.
As you can see, I really liked many ideas in the book, but there's one that I didn't like. It's a decision Charlie and his family make. I think it weakens all the thought-provoking messages the book has been sending out up to one point. Running away from the problem, after everything the book has been saying, comes as a let-down for me.
The characters are fun to read about and get to know. I like the way Annie learns to live and adjust to Ayla's lives while still trying to maintain herself. Charlie is one of the sweetest fictional characters I've ever read about. He's good-looking and very smart, but he's not welcome at school because of his background. He doesn't like bitchy queen bee Ayla, but Annie is good at heart, and Charlie can see that, and that's what he loves about her.
Of course, it's sweet. This can easily be the sweetest thing someone can ever say to someone else. But do you buy it? I don't. I'm a non-believer when it comes to the idea of loving someone purely because of the heart/soul. Surely appearance must play a part, however little or big. This goes against my personal belief, so I had a hard time believing Charlie's love for Annie. Other than these dislikes, this book is made of fun!
Don't You Wish is a fun, thought-provoking story with a touch of science (and time travel!) that explores the idea of perfection. I really enjoyed reading this. This book comes out on July 10, 2012.
I received the digital ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher for review.
I slide on the sunglasses, covering my dazzling green eyes. Because this dream is so bright, I gotta wear shades.
Don't You Wish by Roxanne St. Claire tells a story of Annie Nutter, daughter of Mel and Emily Nutter, who wishes she lived a different life. When Mel comes up with a cool invention called Picture Perfect, Annie literally wakes up in the morning to a different life--the one she wishes for--in a parallel universe. Annie is now living Ayla Monroe's life which is different from her own in most ways except that she still has the same mother, but now Emily Monroe instead of Nutter. Finally living the perfect life she always wishes for, Annie finds herself missing her Nutter family more than ever.
I liked this book. It's fun. I didn't expect much in the first place so I wasn't disappointed. I really like the idea of time travel and parallel universe in this book. I used to be interested in quantum physics, too. The way they all fit together and create a plot for this story is well thought out. Although there are still some things that don't quite make sense, it doesn't affect my enjoyment because it's so much fun.
"Be careful what you wish for," I think, is what this book tries to say. We must've all been in Annie's position at least once in our lives. Sometimes we wish we were something we're not, the better version of ourselves, or someone else entirely. We wish our lives were different, we wish we had money, we wish for success and happiness. The only difference is that Annie gets it. This book explores the idea of "perfect life" really well. The way Annie's character develops throughout the story is nicely done. She goes from a nobody wishing she was a somebody, to a pretty, rich, A-list girl perfection missing her old life and family. Maybe perfection isn't all it's cracked up to be. But oh, the length people would go to achieve perfection, not knowing that maybe the price can be too high.
Another idea I really liked about this book is the "what if" and "what could've been". Sure, as human beings, we wonder all the time. What if I was born to a rich family? What if I had married a rich guy? Oh, I could've been living in that big house with so much money I wouldn't have to work for the rest of my life. These kinds of things. In this book, Annie is doing the wishing while her mother is responsible for the what-if's and what-could've-been's. I found it heart-breaking to have second thoughts when you look back at your life. The way you wish you hadn't made that decision, the way you wonder about the differences you could've made. And again, this book shows that maybe you're better off where you are now. Maybe it's all for the better.
Near the end of the book, I was so much into the story that it was so emotional. Annie is torn between two choices. Will she stay or will she go? In a way, this Ayla Monroe life is perfect. Well, maybe it's not "perfect" perfect, but it's definitely a good quality life, despite broken family and no real friendship. That Annie Nutter life, on the other hand, is full of mess but with loving family and a best friend.
As you can see, I really liked many ideas in the book, but there's one that I didn't like. It's a decision Charlie and his family make. I think it weakens all the thought-provoking messages the book has been sending out up to one point. Running away from the problem, after everything the book has been saying, comes as a let-down for me.
The characters are fun to read about and get to know. I like the way Annie learns to live and adjust to Ayla's lives while still trying to maintain herself. Charlie is one of the sweetest fictional characters I've ever read about. He's good-looking and very smart, but he's not welcome at school because of his background. He doesn't like bitchy queen bee Ayla, but Annie is good at heart, and Charlie can see that, and that's what he loves about her.
"Yes, you are pretty, and when you pictured perfect, you came damn close, but the part of you I like the most is inside."
Of course, it's sweet. This can easily be the sweetest thing someone can ever say to someone else. But do you buy it? I don't. I'm a non-believer when it comes to the idea of loving someone purely because of the heart/soul. Surely appearance must play a part, however little or big. This goes against my personal belief, so I had a hard time believing Charlie's love for Annie. Other than these dislikes, this book is made of fun!
Don't You Wish is a fun, thought-provoking story with a touch of science (and time travel!) that explores the idea of perfection. I really enjoyed reading this. This book comes out on July 10, 2012.
August 3, 2012
This review was originally posted on my blog, Ramblings of a Daydreamer. You can find it, and many more reviews at the blog.
4.5 stars
Don’t You Wish was a book that made me laugh, cry, swoon, cringe, fall in love, and realize how lucky I was in high school. This is another book in a long line of truly amazing, well written, and inspirational contemporary young adult books that has been released in 2012.
Annie Nutter is invisible, except when she’s being tormented by kids at school. She has a pretty normal family - her dad is a bit nutty, her little brother is extra annoying, and her mom is fairly ordinary. There’s nothing extraordinary about her life, and nothing that makes her special (in her mind), which makes Annie wish for more. She wishes she were pretty and popular and had a boyfriend and a bigger house. But when she magically gets sent to an alternate universe where she - as Ayla Monroe - has all those things and more, it’s not at all what she expected.
I could relate to Annie in so many ways. I wasn’t popular at all in high school, and although I had to deal with bullies on occasion, I wasn’t tormented the way Annie was. But, like Annie, I wished I was prettier, had more friends, a boyfriend, and more money. Even though I realized how lucky I was to have what I did have, it didn’t stop me from sometimes fantasizing about having more, just like Annie did.
I loved the progression Annie made throughout the book. She became stronger, smarter, more independent, and she realized that her very best qualities - her kindness, her honesty, her loyalty - were qualities to be admired. She was funny and quirky and I really connected with her.
Then there was Charlie. Oh, Charlie. He was so sweet, and I loved that the relationship between him and Annie/Ayla wasn’t easy. Even though she was Annie on the inside, she was still Ayla on the outside, and Ayla was a nasty piece of work. Together Charlie and Annie learned that things aren’t always what they appear, and the bond that formed between them melted my heart. I also loved Missy - the whole situation with her broke my heart, but her positivity and faith were inspiring.
This book was a nice balance between cute and light, and poignant and thought provoking. I felt for Annie/Ayla through the whole book - first when she was a geeky plain-Jane, and then when she was trapped in Ayla’s life trying to make things better, and also trying to decide whether she should find a way back home or stay. There were moments that broke my heart as I watched Annie/Ayla struggle. Part of her loved her glamorous new life - being popular and beautiful, having money and power - but she missed her old life, old friends, and her real family.
Something else I enjoyed about this book was that it was very honest and talked about some of the darker happenings in teenagers’ lives - sex, bullying, cheating, lying, shoplifting, etc. St. Claire didn’t shy away from telling it like it is, talking about real subjects, and exposing the ugly truth that a lot of books stay away from. Friends aren’t always loyal and loving with your best interests at heart; families are often screwed up; and sex isn’t always sweet and romantic. There was no sugar coating, and I loved that.
As an adult, I really appreciated the lessons in this book, and I know I would have appreciated them as a teenager. In fact, I wish this book had come out when I was a teenager. Sometimes we need a reminder that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side, and that just because people are rich and popular doesn’t mean they’re happy. It’s also nice to be reminded that sometimes there’s a reason we don’t get what we wish for - it wasn’t meant to be, or what we thought we wanted might not really be what we wanted or needed at all.
Sweet, funny, and surprisingly emotional, Don’t You Wish was a book that reminded me why contemporary young adult is my favourite genre.
4.5 stars
Don’t You Wish was a book that made me laugh, cry, swoon, cringe, fall in love, and realize how lucky I was in high school. This is another book in a long line of truly amazing, well written, and inspirational contemporary young adult books that has been released in 2012.
Annie Nutter is invisible, except when she’s being tormented by kids at school. She has a pretty normal family - her dad is a bit nutty, her little brother is extra annoying, and her mom is fairly ordinary. There’s nothing extraordinary about her life, and nothing that makes her special (in her mind), which makes Annie wish for more. She wishes she were pretty and popular and had a boyfriend and a bigger house. But when she magically gets sent to an alternate universe where she - as Ayla Monroe - has all those things and more, it’s not at all what she expected.
I could relate to Annie in so many ways. I wasn’t popular at all in high school, and although I had to deal with bullies on occasion, I wasn’t tormented the way Annie was. But, like Annie, I wished I was prettier, had more friends, a boyfriend, and more money. Even though I realized how lucky I was to have what I did have, it didn’t stop me from sometimes fantasizing about having more, just like Annie did.
I loved the progression Annie made throughout the book. She became stronger, smarter, more independent, and she realized that her very best qualities - her kindness, her honesty, her loyalty - were qualities to be admired. She was funny and quirky and I really connected with her.
Then there was Charlie. Oh, Charlie. He was so sweet, and I loved that the relationship between him and Annie/Ayla wasn’t easy. Even though she was Annie on the inside, she was still Ayla on the outside, and Ayla was a nasty piece of work. Together Charlie and Annie learned that things aren’t always what they appear, and the bond that formed between them melted my heart. I also loved Missy - the whole situation with her broke my heart, but her positivity and faith were inspiring.
This book was a nice balance between cute and light, and poignant and thought provoking. I felt for Annie/Ayla through the whole book - first when she was a geeky plain-Jane, and then when she was trapped in Ayla’s life trying to make things better, and also trying to decide whether she should find a way back home or stay. There were moments that broke my heart as I watched Annie/Ayla struggle. Part of her loved her glamorous new life - being popular and beautiful, having money and power - but she missed her old life, old friends, and her real family.
Something else I enjoyed about this book was that it was very honest and talked about some of the darker happenings in teenagers’ lives - sex, bullying, cheating, lying, shoplifting, etc. St. Claire didn’t shy away from telling it like it is, talking about real subjects, and exposing the ugly truth that a lot of books stay away from. Friends aren’t always loyal and loving with your best interests at heart; families are often screwed up; and sex isn’t always sweet and romantic. There was no sugar coating, and I loved that.
As an adult, I really appreciated the lessons in this book, and I know I would have appreciated them as a teenager. In fact, I wish this book had come out when I was a teenager. Sometimes we need a reminder that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side, and that just because people are rich and popular doesn’t mean they’re happy. It’s also nice to be reminded that sometimes there’s a reason we don’t get what we wish for - it wasn’t meant to be, or what we thought we wanted might not really be what we wanted or needed at all.
Sweet, funny, and surprisingly emotional, Don’t You Wish was a book that reminded me why contemporary young adult is my favourite genre.
February 23, 2012
FOR MORE BOOK REVIEWS, PLEASE VISIT MY BOOK BLOG AT www.readingtsinoy.blogspot.com
THANKS AND HAPPY READING!
Annie Nutter is an "Invisible". A social outcast and perennial bag stopper (meaning people's bags stop moving when they hit her head). With only one friend in school, annie was unhappy. Her social status was non-existent as well as her lovelife. The best and worst she had was when the hottest boy in school asked her out for homecoming.....just so his dog had a "date".
Her mother on the other hand is depressed. Seeing her now multi-billionaire ex-boyfriend on a major magazine made her doubt whether she truly married the right man....which starts Annie thinking.... What if she was the rich man's daughter instead of her current failed inventor father?
Then one night her father's invention accidentally transports her into a parallel universe where she is finally all she wished to be.
She becomes Ayla Monroe. Otherwise known as A-List Ayla. The most beautiful, rich, envied girl in school. The Queen Bee.
Annie is happy being Ayla. Finally she has everything she wanted....or does she?
Her friends are drug users who stole for fun, her boyfriend Ryder pressures her constantly to have sex, her father is never there, her mother is (even in this universe) depressed and her brother hates her.
Then she meets Charlie. An outcast. A former homeless boy who's in school on scholarship. Naturally everyone hates him and is a victim of constant bullying.
But there is something about him that draws Ayla close and to everyone's horror, they fall in love. But love is never easy, especially when you are not yourself. So with Charlie's help, Ayla tries to go home, back to where she belonged...back to where Charlie can not follow....unless.....
I love, love, love this book.
Yes the plot has been used many times before, but the writing, the mapping out of characters is just so good.
Annie is easily relatable. Who among us hasn't felt the need to be accepted? Wanted? Loved?. I also appreciate her misery at seemingly having everything yet also nothing because truly money can only go so far and in the end, it is still love and friendship that makes us who we are.
Now Charlie is a sweet one. He is the underdog who we want to root for and maybe fall in love with. A mature boy with a good heart who loves the Annie in Ayla, with or without the pretty package.
I recommend this book to teens everywhere, especially those who have been, or are currently part of, the "Invisibles". This is a reminder that though life on the other side seems perfect, it probably isn't. And that we might just have it better after all.
for my other book reviews, please check out my blog at:
http://readingtsinoy.blogspot.com/sea...
THANKS AND HAPPY READING!
Annie Nutter is an "Invisible". A social outcast and perennial bag stopper (meaning people's bags stop moving when they hit her head). With only one friend in school, annie was unhappy. Her social status was non-existent as well as her lovelife. The best and worst she had was when the hottest boy in school asked her out for homecoming.....just so his dog had a "date".
Her mother on the other hand is depressed. Seeing her now multi-billionaire ex-boyfriend on a major magazine made her doubt whether she truly married the right man....which starts Annie thinking.... What if she was the rich man's daughter instead of her current failed inventor father?
Then one night her father's invention accidentally transports her into a parallel universe where she is finally all she wished to be.
She becomes Ayla Monroe. Otherwise known as A-List Ayla. The most beautiful, rich, envied girl in school. The Queen Bee.
Annie is happy being Ayla. Finally she has everything she wanted....or does she?
Her friends are drug users who stole for fun, her boyfriend Ryder pressures her constantly to have sex, her father is never there, her mother is (even in this universe) depressed and her brother hates her.
Then she meets Charlie. An outcast. A former homeless boy who's in school on scholarship. Naturally everyone hates him and is a victim of constant bullying.
But there is something about him that draws Ayla close and to everyone's horror, they fall in love. But love is never easy, especially when you are not yourself. So with Charlie's help, Ayla tries to go home, back to where she belonged...back to where Charlie can not follow....unless.....
I love, love, love this book.
Yes the plot has been used many times before, but the writing, the mapping out of characters is just so good.
Annie is easily relatable. Who among us hasn't felt the need to be accepted? Wanted? Loved?. I also appreciate her misery at seemingly having everything yet also nothing because truly money can only go so far and in the end, it is still love and friendship that makes us who we are.
Now Charlie is a sweet one. He is the underdog who we want to root for and maybe fall in love with. A mature boy with a good heart who loves the Annie in Ayla, with or without the pretty package.
I recommend this book to teens everywhere, especially those who have been, or are currently part of, the "Invisibles". This is a reminder that though life on the other side seems perfect, it probably isn't. And that we might just have it better after all.
for my other book reviews, please check out my blog at:
http://readingtsinoy.blogspot.com/sea...
February 16, 2014
'Don't You Wish' would be the perfect base for one of those cute 'n fluffy American Teen Movies, which demonstrate that being popular, rich and beautiful doesn't equal being happy, unconditionally loved and free to do what you want.
The trick to open the unsatisfied heroine's eyes in this particular case is a magical mirror-smartphone-application-thingy invented by a Honey-I-Shrunk-the-Kids-style mad-scientist dad, which paired with the desperate wish for a different life transports the braces-wearing orchestra geek into a parallel universe - one in which her mom married her ambitious first boyfriend instead. One which turned Annie into ultra-bitch 'A-List' Ayla with a sex-hungry jerk-boyfriend, but which contains the adorable scholarship genius Charlie Zielinsky, whose twin-sister's paralyzing car accident used up his family's financial resources and then some.
Certainly the recipe works - and Charlie's charm works, too. I was sufficiently enamoured with him. But the seemingly quantum physics-based mechanics of travel between the parallel worlds can be called murky at best. Especially around the end I felt pretty cheated in my hunger for sound world-building.
The other thing that disturbed my ability to enjoy Annie's/Ayla's transformation were the - admittedly typical - black-and-white strokes, with which the wealthy crowd was depicted: All the boys in Ayla's private high school in Miami are dumb, superficial and sex-hungry, and all the rich-enough non-geeky girls go shop-lifting to compensate for their parents' indifference, smoke weed, sniff coke and carelessly drive around in expensive cars with a couple of mojitos in their bellies. As a Europan and as a handyman's daughter, who was blissfully oblivious to at least half of her classmates' social stati, and whose primary and middle school days were mainly ruled by an iron-fisted but poor queen bee, who lived with her grandparents, because her dad was in prison and her mom constantly in and out of rehab, I am in no position to destroy either the poor-rich-kid cliché nor to question the fixed idea that having certain financial means results in having friends and an opinion worth listening to. Still, I do wonder. Each time.
That doesn't make American Teen Movies or wake-up-heroine-and-be-yourself-books like 'Don't You Wish' indigestible to me, but it places them into the same parallel media universe as space operas and alien inversions.
So, this is my advice: Get out the popcorn, switch off your brains, turn on your swoon-radar and prepare to be entertained.
The trick to open the unsatisfied heroine's eyes in this particular case is a magical mirror-smartphone-application-thingy invented by a Honey-I-Shrunk-the-Kids-style mad-scientist dad, which paired with the desperate wish for a different life transports the braces-wearing orchestra geek into a parallel universe - one in which her mom married her ambitious first boyfriend instead. One which turned Annie into ultra-bitch 'A-List' Ayla with a sex-hungry jerk-boyfriend, but which contains the adorable scholarship genius Charlie Zielinsky, whose twin-sister's paralyzing car accident used up his family's financial resources and then some.
Certainly the recipe works - and Charlie's charm works, too. I was sufficiently enamoured with him. But the seemingly quantum physics-based mechanics of travel between the parallel worlds can be called murky at best. Especially around the end I felt pretty cheated in my hunger for sound world-building.
The other thing that disturbed my ability to enjoy Annie's/Ayla's transformation were the - admittedly typical - black-and-white strokes, with which the wealthy crowd was depicted: All the boys in Ayla's private high school in Miami are dumb, superficial and sex-hungry, and all the rich-enough non-geeky girls go shop-lifting to compensate for their parents' indifference, smoke weed, sniff coke and carelessly drive around in expensive cars with a couple of mojitos in their bellies. As a Europan and as a handyman's daughter, who was blissfully oblivious to at least half of her classmates' social stati, and whose primary and middle school days were mainly ruled by an iron-fisted but poor queen bee, who lived with her grandparents, because her dad was in prison and her mom constantly in and out of rehab, I am in no position to destroy either the poor-rich-kid cliché nor to question the fixed idea that having certain financial means results in having friends and an opinion worth listening to. Still, I do wonder. Each time.
That doesn't make American Teen Movies or wake-up-heroine-and-be-yourself-books like 'Don't You Wish' indigestible to me, but it places them into the same parallel media universe as space operas and alien inversions.
So, this is my advice: Get out the popcorn, switch off your brains, turn on your swoon-radar and prepare to be entertained.
July 5, 2012
Be careful what you wish for....
Annie Nutter wishes her life was different. Unpopular and unpretty (or so she thinks), Annie is wishing she had the life of the popular, rich kids. Through a series of strange events, she gets her wish. Only, the life she lands in (Ayla Monroe's) is vastly different than her real one and she's got about 5 minutes to figure out how to live in this new one.
I really enjoyed this story. I thought I was getting into a cute, light story about wanting what you don't have. (Don't we all wish for more sometimes?) But I was pleasantly surprised by the depth that I found here instead. Yes it's a cute story line, but it really tackles the popularity topic as well as self respect and humanity towards others. It also dabbles in science fiction and while that is usually not my cup of tea, I found it to be intriguing and very well done. I'm always leery of time travel stories or parallel universes and I'm hyper critical of how they play out, but this was well done and never boring in an overly scientific way or dumbed down either.
St. Claire's characterization is amazing. I felt I truly knew each character no matter which universe they were in. I loved every twist and turn this story took and I loved how she keeps you guessing all the way to the very last page!
Annie Nutter wishes her life was different. Unpopular and unpretty (or so she thinks), Annie is wishing she had the life of the popular, rich kids. Through a series of strange events, she gets her wish. Only, the life she lands in (Ayla Monroe's) is vastly different than her real one and she's got about 5 minutes to figure out how to live in this new one.
I really enjoyed this story. I thought I was getting into a cute, light story about wanting what you don't have. (Don't we all wish for more sometimes?) But I was pleasantly surprised by the depth that I found here instead. Yes it's a cute story line, but it really tackles the popularity topic as well as self respect and humanity towards others. It also dabbles in science fiction and while that is usually not my cup of tea, I found it to be intriguing and very well done. I'm always leery of time travel stories or parallel universes and I'm hyper critical of how they play out, but this was well done and never boring in an overly scientific way or dumbed down either.
St. Claire's characterization is amazing. I felt I truly knew each character no matter which universe they were in. I loved every twist and turn this story took and I loved how she keeps you guessing all the way to the very last page!
September 1, 2012
Don't you wish is the ultimate teen read with a little twist thrown in.
What if you were transported to a parallel universe where you were the most popular girl at school, had the biggest house and went to the best parties? Well, that is exactly what happens to our main character, Annie Nutter. Average and not one of the popular kids, Annie wishs to have all these people have and through a freak accident and a strike of lightning. She ends up in the body of Ayla Monroe, she has the same mother but her father is rich.
As she settles into Ayla's privileged life, she realizes that Ayla was not exactly the nicest person. In fact, she was the meanest. People immediately notice Ayla is different and Annie resolves to follow her own values instead of conforming to the pressure of being popular. She makes a friend in Charlie and they fall in love.
Honestly, I never expected a love story out of this but the author blended it so well into the plot. Annie wants to go home and shares with Charlie what actually happened to her. It was amazing how science and physics was incorporated into the storyline and it sounded so believable. Props to the author.
I really enjoyed this novel. Heart warming, sweet and hilarious. Do give it a go.
What if you were transported to a parallel universe where you were the most popular girl at school, had the biggest house and went to the best parties? Well, that is exactly what happens to our main character, Annie Nutter. Average and not one of the popular kids, Annie wishs to have all these people have and through a freak accident and a strike of lightning. She ends up in the body of Ayla Monroe, she has the same mother but her father is rich.
As she settles into Ayla's privileged life, she realizes that Ayla was not exactly the nicest person. In fact, she was the meanest. People immediately notice Ayla is different and Annie resolves to follow her own values instead of conforming to the pressure of being popular. She makes a friend in Charlie and they fall in love.
Honestly, I never expected a love story out of this but the author blended it so well into the plot. Annie wants to go home and shares with Charlie what actually happened to her. It was amazing how science and physics was incorporated into the storyline and it sounded so believable. Props to the author.
I really enjoyed this novel. Heart warming, sweet and hilarious. Do give it a go.
did-not-finish
May 18, 2017DNF at page 130. There's really nothing wrong with this book I guess, except it wasn't what I wanted. I love parallel universe books but that aspect isn't really obvious. Basically the girl gets transported to a universe where she's rich because her mom married someone else. Not sure how that gets resolved, but I don't want to bother finding out. The main plot is that she's rich and bitchy now; she steals stuff with her friends and has a shitty boyfriend. I don't like reading others being mean/bullies so I'll just quit now.
December 17, 2017
This book is about a girl wishing to lead another life and it happened. It was a blessing in disguise for Annie Nutter when she woke up one day being a popular kid from a wealthy family instead of invisible kid in the school. But little did she knows the drawback of her wish..
December 26, 2011
♥ Find my reviews on Blogger ~ Reviews by Bookish Sarah
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**Some small spoilers ahead - nothing big!**
Annie Nutter is a ‘Nobody’ - that's literally what the popular kids call her (and others like her) at high school. She's considered unremarkable and not even worth acknowledging. Her family struggles financially, her mom is average, and her dad is a super-kooky inventor. Annie's social life is nil, and so is her love life.
One day - after a prank in which the most gorgeous, popular guy in school asks Annie to homecoming only to turn it into a beyond humiliating joke in front of the entire school bus - Annie finds her mother crying in the magazine section at Wal-Mart. In her mother's hands is a magazine with an article about a billionaire and his amazing new home - turns out that Annie's mom once dated this man and may harbor some regrets about the direction her life has taken.
After Annie's parents have a very short, yet intense argument over one of her father's latest inventions... Annie has no idea what will happen to her family at this point, but she does know one thing: She is tired of being Annie Nutter. Tired of being at the bottom of the social ladder, tired of being the butt of jokes, tired of struggling, tired of it all.
That night Annie's life is changed forever. During a lightning storm, one of her father's inventions goes haywire and transports Annie to a whole other life. She went to bed as Annie Nutter - poor girl, social outcast, with her family in turmoil... and woke up as Ayla Monroe - rich girl, queen bee, with a mansion fully equipped with servants and a shiny new family.
Is having everything you've ever wanted worth paying the ultimate price? Annie (or should I say Ayla?) is about to find out.
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This book is quite unique (I've never read one like it), and I loved it!
My only complaint is that there seemed to be a bit too much focus on the social aspect of Annie's life. The high school popularity chain, the hierarchy. It was too much. I began to get bored with it about half-way through. I think the author could have toned that down a bit.
I like that this book had it's light themes - the inventions, Annie's quirky father, Annie's inner dialogue - BUT it also had some deeper ones as well. They lay beneath the surface and there are definitely some very important lessons to be learned from reading this book. I think it is a really fantastic book for teens. It was light, yet emotional and moving. I found myself in tears on a couple occasions while laughing at others.
I think the romance was sweet and fun. Annie/Ayla and Charlie was a believable love story and I enjoyed the way everything played out. For me, the plot was paced out to perfection. The end was everything I wanted it to be. ♥
Let's see.. there is some mild sexual content, very vague references to drug use. Nothing too bad at all, no cursing that I remember. I'd say it's definitely teen friendly. I'd recommend it to anyone for a truly fun read.
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ARC source: NetGalley
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
July 24, 2012
At some point, every one of us has imagined what our life would be like if we were richer, smarter, more popular, etc. or where we’d be today if we had made a life-altering decision differently. This is the idea behind Roxanne St. Claire’s novel Don’t You Wish.
Partly because of its premise and partly because of Annie’s personality, I found it incredibly easy to relate to her. She’s your average teen with frizzy hair and a mouth full of braces, crushing on an unattainable guy and still growing into herself. After getting humiliated by her crush and finding out that her mom could have married a man who became filthy rich, it’s no wonder that Annie dreams what it would have been like to grow up being rich, beautiful and popular.
Having forgotten what Don’t You Wish was supposed to be about before reading it, I figured that Annie was just dreaming that her wish came true and she was Ayla Monroe. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised – which wouldn't have happened if I had only read the synopsis – to find that the premise of Don’t You Wish was based on theories about parallel universes. I’m no quantum physicist – in fact, I sucked at physics in high school – so I have no idea how credible Charlie’s argument is, but the explanation made sense to me.
Of course when Annie wakes up and finds herself in Ayla’s body, she’s thrilled. (I’d be too!) But what will Annie do when she realizes that she’s stuck as Ayla, and that Ayla’s seemingly perfect life isn’t so perfect? And after settling into Ayla’s life; when given the choice, will Annie choose to stay on as Ayla or go back to her old ordinary life?
Filled with implicit lessons that people sometimes preach as advice (e.g. be careful what you wish for, money doesn’t buy happiness, etc.), Don’t You Wish was a fun read with a neat and happy ending that will leave you with a smile.
Partly because of its premise and partly because of Annie’s personality, I found it incredibly easy to relate to her. She’s your average teen with frizzy hair and a mouth full of braces, crushing on an unattainable guy and still growing into herself. After getting humiliated by her crush and finding out that her mom could have married a man who became filthy rich, it’s no wonder that Annie dreams what it would have been like to grow up being rich, beautiful and popular.
Having forgotten what Don’t You Wish was supposed to be about before reading it, I figured that Annie was just dreaming that her wish came true and she was Ayla Monroe. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised – which wouldn't have happened if I had only read the synopsis – to find that the premise of Don’t You Wish was based on theories about parallel universes. I’m no quantum physicist – in fact, I sucked at physics in high school – so I have no idea how credible Charlie’s argument is, but the explanation made sense to me.
Of course when Annie wakes up and finds herself in Ayla’s body, she’s thrilled. (I’d be too!) But what will Annie do when she realizes that she’s stuck as Ayla, and that Ayla’s seemingly perfect life isn’t so perfect? And after settling into Ayla’s life; when given the choice, will Annie choose to stay on as Ayla or go back to her old ordinary life?
Filled with implicit lessons that people sometimes preach as advice (e.g. be careful what you wish for, money doesn’t buy happiness, etc.), Don’t You Wish was a fun read with a neat and happy ending that will leave you with a smile.
July 17, 2014
One of the fast-paced books I have ever read and enjoyed! I was hooked since page and it only got better as the story processed. It was funny in a silly way that I couldn't help but laugh. Yet there were serious scenes that got me thinking as well.
I loved Annie. Like seriously loved her. She stayed true to herself that even when she because the queen bee of the school, she rather gave up those statues just to be who she really was.
Charlie was also one of my most favorite characters in the book. He was so adorable and the sweetest guy ever.
I also liked silly bitchy Bliss who couldn't use the right words. She made me laugh every single time she opened her mouth.
This is one great book that will make you think again when you wish you were living a different life.
I loved Annie. Like seriously loved her. She stayed true to herself that even when she because the queen bee of the school, she rather gave up those statues just to be who she really was.
Charlie was also one of my most favorite characters in the book. He was so adorable and the sweetest guy ever.
I also liked silly bitchy Bliss who couldn't use the right words. She made me laugh every single time she opened her mouth.
This is one great book that will make you think again when you wish you were living a different life.
November 7, 2011
This was a cute, fun read. It's your typical nerdy girl who wishes she was part of the in crowd and has an opportunity to live in a parallel universe when she realizes who she really is. Nothing special and totally predictable, but I liked it enough, and the last part of the book, especially the last chapter won me over, especially the end when the book came back in full circle with the bus scene.
March 9, 2018
I really liked this book. it is especially written for young people which I am not but still very entertaining and a fast read. wasn't sure how it would end but liked the convoluted conclusion.
April 12, 2012
Read more of my reviews at Nick's Book Blog.
"How original!" was my very first thought when I came across Don't You Wish by Roxanne St. Claire on Goodreads. When I saw that the book was available on NetGalley, I didn't hesitate once to request an ARC of it and I was super excited to have been approved! Unlike many of the books that I've had high expectations for, Don't You Wish was an utter delight !
Annie Nutter, our main character, is an "Invisible". She is a nobody at her school and is often mistreated and made fun of by the popular kids at her school. Because of this constant embarrassment, Annie craves popularity, gorgeous clothes, a prettier face and a love life. When she finds her mother crying over a magazine featuring her ex-boyfriend, Jim Monroe, now a billionaire plastic surgeon, she wonders what it would have been like to have been to her mom and Jim instead of her mom and dad. That same day, her father, who is an inventor and a collector of useless things, creates this wacky mirror that shows you in a different, more perfect way. Annie wakes up the next morning in a different bed, a different body and different universe. She's no longer Annie Nutter, but she's Ayla Monroe.
Ayla is popular, rich, beautiful, has an immense closet with pretty clothes and a super hot boyfriend. To Annie, this is a dream come true. However, soon, it dawns on Annie that being all these things doesn't necessarily mean happiness.
Annie had a very likable personality. She had the kind of voice that was warm and funny. I couldn't help but love her character. Sure, at first it bothered me a little bit that she wanted to be popular this much, but gradually I began to understand her feelings by the events that occur in the book.
When she wakes up as Ayla, I thought for sure she would let the popularity get into her head until she would do something so drastic that would unrepairable until too late. However, she proved me wrong, which is why I really enjoyed her character. She was an emotionally strong character who stood up for herself and for the right things. I loved how supportive she was of people who were being mistreated by Ayla's friends, although they threatened to break off their friendship and put an end to her popularity. Wise and smart, Annie always did the right thing and I looked up to her for that.
In Ayla's life, Annie meets with Charlie. Charlie was a "homeless" scholarship student who was looked down upon and ostracized in his posh school. People insulted him, bullied him, made fun of him and basically, didn't let him live in peace. He has no friends and if people even dare to say a word to him, they were frowned upon. Some of the things that the popular kids did to him outraged and revolted me so much that I was glad I wasn't part of that life. Nevertheless, Charlie had a really positive attitude to his life in general. He was also a terribly sweet guy and I loved how nice he was to Annie. Overall, I found Charlie to be an adorable cute nerd who saw Annie's soul in Ayla.
The romance in this book was my favorite kind. Cute. It develops from friendship and blossoms into a romantic relationship. I liked how Annie and Charlie actually get to know and understand each other before jumping into a relationship. They were truly a heart-melting couple who had me rooting for them to be together. I simply loved how they protected and stood by each other no matter what. According to me, the romance was simply perfect!
I won't deny that the secondary characters were pretty cliched. Popular cheerleaders, mean girls, nerds, jocks etc ...
Nevertheless, they were quite enjoyable and fun to read about.
The plot of the book wasn't exactly completely original. Numerous books about nerdy, invisible girls turning into popular girls have been written. The imaginative part of this book arises from the the whole switching into a different universe aspect.
Even with the over-used and predictable story line, Roxanne St Claire manages to create a refreshing story that is highly enjoyable. Her writing was smooth, charming and easy to follow. There is no doubt that I'll be picking up more from this author!
To sum up, this was a truly wonderful book. Entwining friendship, love, family, need, wants and reality, the author has created a cute, light and sweet book that many readers will without doubt enjoy!
July 6, 2012
When I read the synopsis for this book I thought it sounded like a really great book. I liked the idea of her getting to experience the life she could only dream about. Be a popular, gorgeous rich kid instead of the invisible nobody with braces and freckles. I wanted to know how it would all turn out. This book is full of the typical cliches. The popular rich kids are the mean kids who everyone else absolutely worships. They can get away with anything and everything and they feel like they have to treat people like crap to keep up their superior status. They wouldn't be caught dead wearing anything but Prada, Dior, or other designer brands.
OMG did I hate the characters at first. Well, actually for a lot of the book. I will be honest. I was a few pages away from putting it down. That is how much I was bothered by the characters and the lacking plot. I am glad that I decided to give it one more chapter because that was the one that got me. After that next chapter I needed to see what would happen. Ayla/Annie changes and I see her redeemable qualities, but it wasn't as much her that kept me reading as it was Charlie. I really liked Charlie. He is a great character.
Annie, or Ayla was not very likable for most of the book at all. We get her as Annie for a short while in the beginning and you do feel a little bad for her. Then when she ends up being zapped into the life of Ayla she starts to get on my nerves. She is now popular, pretty, and rich. She also has a hot boyfriend and super cool friends. She is the queen of her school. Even though Annie is really in there, she acts like such a jerk about things. She doesn't want to ruin things for Ayla by being nice when she is supposed to be snobby and mean. She is constantly correcting her dumb friend. (Which really, I couldn't stand Bliss, but Ayla would constantly correct her when she used the wrong word or phrase.) Jade wasn't as bad, but she is still so concerned about their image as the A-listers. It got so annoying. I don't know if rich kids who go to fancy schools really act that way, but I wanted to smack them all.
Charlie was awesome. He was the game changer. I kept reading for him. The Annie inside of Ayla just can't seem to stop herself from being interested in him. He also helps her even when she hasn't been very nice to him. He happens to pretty much be a genius, has a great twin sister named Missy, and sees the real Annie underneath all the glam and attitude. I liked how he finally was able to bring out the real her. She had pretty much crashed and burn when she wouldn't sleep with her egotistical boyfriend and Charlie was there to pick up the pieces. She trusts him with the truth about what happened to her, and he stands by her and the decisions she has to make. Total sweetheart!!
The story to me was very slow and aggravating to start. I didn't like the characters at all. When I want to punch everyone in the face it's pretty hard to enjoy reading a book. Especially the parents. I couldn't stand the way Ayla's parents were. I hated her dad the most. What an ass!! For real. It took a long time to get into this book unfortunately. Like 200 pages, but I really did end up liking it in the end. It could have been much shorter and more to the point I think, but it was enjoyable. It had a good message in the end and I think a lot of people will really like this one.
OMG did I hate the characters at first. Well, actually for a lot of the book. I will be honest. I was a few pages away from putting it down. That is how much I was bothered by the characters and the lacking plot. I am glad that I decided to give it one more chapter because that was the one that got me. After that next chapter I needed to see what would happen. Ayla/Annie changes and I see her redeemable qualities, but it wasn't as much her that kept me reading as it was Charlie. I really liked Charlie. He is a great character.
Annie, or Ayla was not very likable for most of the book at all. We get her as Annie for a short while in the beginning and you do feel a little bad for her. Then when she ends up being zapped into the life of Ayla she starts to get on my nerves. She is now popular, pretty, and rich. She also has a hot boyfriend and super cool friends. She is the queen of her school. Even though Annie is really in there, she acts like such a jerk about things. She doesn't want to ruin things for Ayla by being nice when she is supposed to be snobby and mean. She is constantly correcting her dumb friend. (Which really, I couldn't stand Bliss, but Ayla would constantly correct her when she used the wrong word or phrase.) Jade wasn't as bad, but she is still so concerned about their image as the A-listers. It got so annoying. I don't know if rich kids who go to fancy schools really act that way, but I wanted to smack them all.
Charlie was awesome. He was the game changer. I kept reading for him. The Annie inside of Ayla just can't seem to stop herself from being interested in him. He also helps her even when she hasn't been very nice to him. He happens to pretty much be a genius, has a great twin sister named Missy, and sees the real Annie underneath all the glam and attitude. I liked how he finally was able to bring out the real her. She had pretty much crashed and burn when she wouldn't sleep with her egotistical boyfriend and Charlie was there to pick up the pieces. She trusts him with the truth about what happened to her, and he stands by her and the decisions she has to make. Total sweetheart!!
The story to me was very slow and aggravating to start. I didn't like the characters at all. When I want to punch everyone in the face it's pretty hard to enjoy reading a book. Especially the parents. I couldn't stand the way Ayla's parents were. I hated her dad the most. What an ass!! For real. It took a long time to get into this book unfortunately. Like 200 pages, but I really did end up liking it in the end. It could have been much shorter and more to the point I think, but it was enjoyable. It had a good message in the end and I think a lot of people will really like this one.
March 2, 2014
2.5/5
This book felt like a slightly heavier version of You Wish. Not specifically because of its similarity with the plot, but for overall writing style, humor, generally good-natured message, and tone.
You’d think this book would be depressing. Or that Annie would have some serious, deep epiphany and there’d be this huge “a-ha” moment and then she’d have to deal with the consequences of her actions, but somehow everything would turn out OK. There’d be a happy ending, and she’d up with her One True Love.
This book was kind of like that, but with a twist. Because, although Annie learns her lesson, it’s almost as if her alternate reality didn’t even happen. She’s saved by love in both realities, and she never has to truly face the consequences of her actions. In fact, though she probably (in hindsight) helped, rather than hurt Ayla’s life, she still messed with it...
The science behind the hows and whys weren’t satisfactorily explained. So the story is probably not meant to be deciphered and analyzed with a technical eye. I’m generally an easy reader to please, and it didn’t bug me that much. But still.
All in all, the description for this book kind of says it all. The story, characters, romance, friendships, and the whole shebang doesn’t falter outside the formulaic lines of frilly, fluffy, feel-good, Disney-esque, made-for-tv-movies boundaries. So it’s predictable, and the chemistry between the H/h is lukewarm.
I just didn’t like the explanation at the end – the way everything just resolved itself. How, in the end, Annie ended up with who she was supposed to but not really.
Finally, the whole stereotype thing irked me. So, the rich & popular just HAVE to be little thieves, sluts, arrogant, shallow, almost-rapists, and druggies, right? ‘Cause that’s just SO original, and god forbid, a “nerd” or a kid from orchestra stray from their respective role by – oh I dunno – being human?! *sigh* No one is perfect. No matter what stereotype you fall into - everyone makes mistakes.
I like books that are complicate and complex. But this one probably should’ve stuck with short, simple, clear, and fluffy - like the cover.
This book felt like a slightly heavier version of You Wish. Not specifically because of its similarity with the plot, but for overall writing style, humor, generally good-natured message, and tone.
You’d think this book would be depressing. Or that Annie would have some serious, deep epiphany and there’d be this huge “a-ha” moment and then she’d have to deal with the consequences of her actions, but somehow everything would turn out OK. There’d be a happy ending, and she’d up with her One True Love.
This book was kind of like that, but with a twist. Because, although Annie learns her lesson, it’s almost as if her alternate reality didn’t even happen. She’s saved by love in both realities, and she never has to truly face the consequences of her actions. In fact, though she probably (in hindsight) helped, rather than hurt Ayla’s life, she still messed with it...
The science behind the hows and whys weren’t satisfactorily explained. So the story is probably not meant to be deciphered and analyzed with a technical eye. I’m generally an easy reader to please, and it didn’t bug me that much. But still.
All in all, the description for this book kind of says it all. The story, characters, romance, friendships, and the whole shebang doesn’t falter outside the formulaic lines of frilly, fluffy, feel-good, Disney-esque, made-for-tv-movies boundaries. So it’s predictable, and the chemistry between the H/h is lukewarm.
I just didn’t like the explanation at the end – the way everything just resolved itself. How, in the end, Annie ended up with who she was supposed to but not really.
Finally, the whole stereotype thing irked me. So, the rich & popular just HAVE to be little thieves, sluts, arrogant, shallow, almost-rapists, and druggies, right? ‘Cause that’s just SO original, and god forbid, a “nerd” or a kid from orchestra stray from their respective role by – oh I dunno – being human?! *sigh* No one is perfect. No matter what stereotype you fall into - everyone makes mistakes.
I like books that are complicate and complex. But this one probably should’ve stuck with short, simple, clear, and fluffy - like the cover.
December 29, 2011
SUMMARY:
What would you do if you have a machine that would make you someone else, someone better than the real you? Do you think it would be worth it to give up on the things that you have now to be that person?
Annie Nutter wanted to be rich and popular. To be liked and loved by everyone at school. She wanted her crush to notice her. She got her wish, he did notice her but only to humiliate her.
Mel Nutter, Annie’s father was an inventor. He invented a device that would let you see what you would like to look like or who you would like to be. Annie was not really a fan of her father’s work but she decided to try it out anyways. Miraculously, it did work until her mother threw a fit and broke the device.
Annie then took the pieces of her laptop back to her room to try and fix it. Her father’s handheld gadget that would make his invention work was with her. Then everything changed all of a sudden. One minute she was Annie Nutter, the next she was Ayla Monroe, the daughter of a Jim Monroe who happened to be a billionaire and her mother’s ex-boyfriend.
THE REVIEW:
I loved the concept of this book. It was one of those books that you wouldn’t mind reading again and again.
Almost everyone wishes they were someone else. Annie was just one of them. She wanted to have more money, to live in a bigger house, to be more popular and she did get it. But. There is a BIG but there. At the end of the day, was she happy? The answer is no. She was not happy.
Annie was a very relatable character. I see myself in her. I was one of the invisibles when I was at school and I did wish to be popular and rich and all. I used to wish that I could be rich and popular. Difference between Annie and me was that she got what she wished for and I didn’t.
Sometimes she does piss me off. She was smart and all but just for the sake of being popular she does things with her friends that were not really acceptable. Being popular and rich has its perks but also it has its bad side too. If I was in her shoes, I’d enjoy everything but wouldn’t give in to the temptation doing the bad things that I could get away. Also I hate bullying! A big NO NO for me.
I don’t want to give anymore spoilers on it. This book is just so good to give anything away. You guys have to read it to see what I mean.
The guy in this book was special and he was not the guy who you’d expect to be Annie/Ayla’s love interest. I like him because he was smart and really dependable. He was from the alternate world where Annie was Ayla. He somehow found a way for them to be together and also save her sister. Arrrg I wouldn’t give out clues anymore.
All in all I liked the book. It did bore me a little during the first part of the book but redeemed itself in the later part. I noticed some other stuff too but they’re just minor things that can easily neglected.
A job well done on this one.
4.5 stars! :)
What would you do if you have a machine that would make you someone else, someone better than the real you? Do you think it would be worth it to give up on the things that you have now to be that person?
Annie Nutter wanted to be rich and popular. To be liked and loved by everyone at school. She wanted her crush to notice her. She got her wish, he did notice her but only to humiliate her.
Mel Nutter, Annie’s father was an inventor. He invented a device that would let you see what you would like to look like or who you would like to be. Annie was not really a fan of her father’s work but she decided to try it out anyways. Miraculously, it did work until her mother threw a fit and broke the device.
Annie then took the pieces of her laptop back to her room to try and fix it. Her father’s handheld gadget that would make his invention work was with her. Then everything changed all of a sudden. One minute she was Annie Nutter, the next she was Ayla Monroe, the daughter of a Jim Monroe who happened to be a billionaire and her mother’s ex-boyfriend.
THE REVIEW:
I loved the concept of this book. It was one of those books that you wouldn’t mind reading again and again.
Almost everyone wishes they were someone else. Annie was just one of them. She wanted to have more money, to live in a bigger house, to be more popular and she did get it. But. There is a BIG but there. At the end of the day, was she happy? The answer is no. She was not happy.
Annie was a very relatable character. I see myself in her. I was one of the invisibles when I was at school and I did wish to be popular and rich and all. I used to wish that I could be rich and popular. Difference between Annie and me was that she got what she wished for and I didn’t.
Sometimes she does piss me off. She was smart and all but just for the sake of being popular she does things with her friends that were not really acceptable. Being popular and rich has its perks but also it has its bad side too. If I was in her shoes, I’d enjoy everything but wouldn’t give in to the temptation doing the bad things that I could get away. Also I hate bullying! A big NO NO for me.
I don’t want to give anymore spoilers on it. This book is just so good to give anything away. You guys have to read it to see what I mean.
The guy in this book was special and he was not the guy who you’d expect to be Annie/Ayla’s love interest. I like him because he was smart and really dependable. He was from the alternate world where Annie was Ayla. He somehow found a way for them to be together and also save her sister. Arrrg I wouldn’t give out clues anymore.
All in all I liked the book. It did bore me a little during the first part of the book but redeemed itself in the later part. I noticed some other stuff too but they’re just minor things that can easily neglected.
A job well done on this one.
4.5 stars! :)
July 15, 2012
Plain-Jane Annie lives with her inventor dad, depressed mom and annoying little brother. She’s a nobody at school, her dad is always rambling on about his latest crazy invention, her brother enjoys burping in her face and her mom is feeling blue and reminiscing about ‘the one that got away’. Annie starts thinking about how her life would be different if her mom’s ‘the one that got away’ was her father, then abracadabra, she wakes up as Ayla. At first everything is amazing; Ayla’s loaded and can buy anything she wants. She’s the It girl at school and she has the best boyfriend ever. You know where this is going, right?
It turns out life is not as fabulous as she thought it would be. The boyfriend isn’t so wonderful, the friends aren’t as true and the parents are barely present. But she can’t just wish her way back to being Annie, and by the time she might be able to, it’s not as easy a decision as it was in the beginning.
Annie was your typical shy girl, with the one close girlfriend and crush on the unattainable hot jock. She was likable and believable, someone I totally could have seen at my high school. I especially liked her mom, who, though relatively happy in her life, couldn’t help but wonder “what if?”. I enjoyed the journey as Ayla changed from who she used to be into who Annie was. Her interactions with her friends and family were honest and believable. My favorite was Charlie, the ‘nobody’ whom Annie-as-Ayla befriends. Le sigh.
Annie-as-Ayla had to juggle sounding like Ayla without alerting anyone to the fact that the Ayla they knew was gone. The way the teens talked to each other was honest and fun. Though I did think Ayla’s popular friends were a little over the top, in both their dialogue and behavior. It was almost like Roxanne St. Clair tried to make them as catty and obnoxious as possible. I can’t imagine there being too many young adults out there who are actually like that.
The build-up to the climax was great, and I couldn’t figure out how the author was going to finish it with a happy ending for everybody. By the end, there really was no perfectly obvious solution. I was surprised and quite happy with how she pulled it off. In fact, this is one of my favorite book endings. Slight spoiler ahead:
Some may call it a cop-out on the author’s part, but I love when a book is tied up nice and neat, like this one. There was a twist, though, that made it even better.
The cover is cute, and I like the split with the title off to the side, but I think it’s kind of… nondescript. It’s a girl wearing sunglasses, you know? And shouldn’t the bottom mirror-image be Annie and look different, less glamorous? Just a thought.
The sum up: I loved Don’t You Wish. It was fun and fast with relatable characters and a great story. And that ending! *Swoon.*
It turns out life is not as fabulous as she thought it would be. The boyfriend isn’t so wonderful, the friends aren’t as true and the parents are barely present. But she can’t just wish her way back to being Annie, and by the time she might be able to, it’s not as easy a decision as it was in the beginning.
Annie was your typical shy girl, with the one close girlfriend and crush on the unattainable hot jock. She was likable and believable, someone I totally could have seen at my high school. I especially liked her mom, who, though relatively happy in her life, couldn’t help but wonder “what if?”. I enjoyed the journey as Ayla changed from who she used to be into who Annie was. Her interactions with her friends and family were honest and believable. My favorite was Charlie, the ‘nobody’ whom Annie-as-Ayla befriends. Le sigh.
Annie-as-Ayla had to juggle sounding like Ayla without alerting anyone to the fact that the Ayla they knew was gone. The way the teens talked to each other was honest and fun. Though I did think Ayla’s popular friends were a little over the top, in both their dialogue and behavior. It was almost like Roxanne St. Clair tried to make them as catty and obnoxious as possible. I can’t imagine there being too many young adults out there who are actually like that.
The build-up to the climax was great, and I couldn’t figure out how the author was going to finish it with a happy ending for everybody. By the end, there really was no perfectly obvious solution. I was surprised and quite happy with how she pulled it off. In fact, this is one of my favorite book endings. Slight spoiler ahead:
Some may call it a cop-out on the author’s part, but I love when a book is tied up nice and neat, like this one. There was a twist, though, that made it even better.
The cover is cute, and I like the split with the title off to the side, but I think it’s kind of… nondescript. It’s a girl wearing sunglasses, you know? And shouldn’t the bottom mirror-image be Annie and look different, less glamorous? Just a thought.
The sum up: I loved Don’t You Wish. It was fun and fast with relatable characters and a great story. And that ending! *Swoon.*
November 24, 2011
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http://diamondinroughcoal.blogspot.com
Review
Annie Nutter has what she thinks is a horrible life. Her Father works at a crappy job while trying to invent things that never work, her Mother is miserable living in their run-down, trashy house and she has an obnoxious little brother. Then one day the most popular boy in school makes a laughingstock of her on the schoolbus, her Mom sees the house she would've had is she's married her old boyfriend Jim Monroe, and her parents have a huge blowout over her Dad's latest crazy invention that shows your ideal face/body. Annie is somehow transported by that messed up invention into a parallel universe where her Mom married Jim Monroe instead of Mel Nutter and she's popular, gorgeous, bitchy Ayla Monroe living in Miami instead of Pittsburgh. Annie enjoys the designer clothes, the servants, the beautiful house and everything that goes with it. Except for the fact that her parents are on the verge of divorce because of her Dad's infidelity, her Mom and her brother Trent hate her, plus the entire school's afraid of her because Ayla ruled with an iron fist. Annie decides to start living the way she wants to, ditching her ass of a popular boyfriend on the night she was supposed to be de-virginized and becoming friends, more later on, with a poor scholarship student Charlie. Him and his sister Missy are reasons why Annie wants to stay and live Ayla's life even though it's pretty superficial and miserable. But he is working on a way to send her back to her life as Annie Nutter. Can they change things for the better at all before she leaves? Or will she stay and become Ayla for good. This book was an extremely fun story and I had a wonderful time reading it. Annie's life as an invisible, unpopular girl was relatable and she was a fairly strong character. Also, who has honestly NEVER ONCE imagined the 'what-ifs' of their life? I would recommend this to anyone who wants a quick, sweet read that has a lot of heart and some laughs.
VERDICT: 4/5 Stars
*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money was exchanged for this review. The expected publication of this book is July 10th, 2012.*
http://diamondinroughcoal.blogspot.com
Review
Annie Nutter has what she thinks is a horrible life. Her Father works at a crappy job while trying to invent things that never work, her Mother is miserable living in their run-down, trashy house and she has an obnoxious little brother. Then one day the most popular boy in school makes a laughingstock of her on the schoolbus, her Mom sees the house she would've had is she's married her old boyfriend Jim Monroe, and her parents have a huge blowout over her Dad's latest crazy invention that shows your ideal face/body. Annie is somehow transported by that messed up invention into a parallel universe where her Mom married Jim Monroe instead of Mel Nutter and she's popular, gorgeous, bitchy Ayla Monroe living in Miami instead of Pittsburgh. Annie enjoys the designer clothes, the servants, the beautiful house and everything that goes with it. Except for the fact that her parents are on the verge of divorce because of her Dad's infidelity, her Mom and her brother Trent hate her, plus the entire school's afraid of her because Ayla ruled with an iron fist. Annie decides to start living the way she wants to, ditching her ass of a popular boyfriend on the night she was supposed to be de-virginized and becoming friends, more later on, with a poor scholarship student Charlie. Him and his sister Missy are reasons why Annie wants to stay and live Ayla's life even though it's pretty superficial and miserable. But he is working on a way to send her back to her life as Annie Nutter. Can they change things for the better at all before she leaves? Or will she stay and become Ayla for good. This book was an extremely fun story and I had a wonderful time reading it. Annie's life as an invisible, unpopular girl was relatable and she was a fairly strong character. Also, who has honestly NEVER ONCE imagined the 'what-ifs' of their life? I would recommend this to anyone who wants a quick, sweet read that has a lot of heart and some laughs.
VERDICT: 4/5 Stars
*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money was exchanged for this review. The expected publication of this book is July 10th, 2012.*
July 19, 2012
Well, this was a cheesy read. Just look at the cover, look at the summary, Don’t You Wish is exactly as fluffy as I’d expected it to be. Of course, that’s not a bad thing, I like Annie Nutter’s, umm, cross dimensional story of becoming Ayla Monroe, and there’s even a pretty good message of being happy with who you are neatly tucked into this. But now that I’ve finished, I really don’t feel that strongly about this book, one way or the other.
Annie and her family I guess are kinda cute. She starts out pretty much being tormented by the popular crowd, ok, not cool, but the way she describes what she suffers through, yeah it got a few smiles from me. And her family, well her father’s the picture of the clichéd absent minded down on his luck nutty professor - he’s funny but groan-worthy at the same time with his obsession over his inventions and inability to really support the family financially. So Annie learns her mother, the least clichéd member of the family, could’ve ended up with a wealthy plastic surgeon, wonders what’ll happen to her family because of their money troubles, and then gets zapped by one of her father’s inventions into an alternate dimension where her father’s the wealthy plastic surgeon. Ok, wish fulfillment, I get it.
Of course, then there are the requisite (and somewhat funny) Annie (now Ayla) can’t believe her new identity scenes, then the her going wild with her new identity scenes, before the she finally figures out how all her popularity post new identity has gotten to her head scene. It’s all exactly what I expected, even down to Annie figuring out this new reality isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, how she and her family aren’t better off as she thought, leading to one of those satisfying yet slightly opened ended endings. All in all, while the characters, the scenes, and the writing are cute, they’re not exactly ridiculously funny or emotionally satisfying, so my reaction was mostly hey this is pretty cute too rather than wow, what an awesome read.
Anyway, Don’t You Wish is a light fluffy read with the added messaged I’d expected from the summary coming into this book. Actually, most of the book’s exactly what I expected. Left me feeling all sugary, can’t say I’m impressed, but can’t say I’m disappointed either.
Annie and her family I guess are kinda cute. She starts out pretty much being tormented by the popular crowd, ok, not cool, but the way she describes what she suffers through, yeah it got a few smiles from me. And her family, well her father’s the picture of the clichéd absent minded down on his luck nutty professor - he’s funny but groan-worthy at the same time with his obsession over his inventions and inability to really support the family financially. So Annie learns her mother, the least clichéd member of the family, could’ve ended up with a wealthy plastic surgeon, wonders what’ll happen to her family because of their money troubles, and then gets zapped by one of her father’s inventions into an alternate dimension where her father’s the wealthy plastic surgeon. Ok, wish fulfillment, I get it.
Of course, then there are the requisite (and somewhat funny) Annie (now Ayla) can’t believe her new identity scenes, then the her going wild with her new identity scenes, before the she finally figures out how all her popularity post new identity has gotten to her head scene. It’s all exactly what I expected, even down to Annie figuring out this new reality isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, how she and her family aren’t better off as she thought, leading to one of those satisfying yet slightly opened ended endings. All in all, while the characters, the scenes, and the writing are cute, they’re not exactly ridiculously funny or emotionally satisfying, so my reaction was mostly hey this is pretty cute too rather than wow, what an awesome read.
Anyway, Don’t You Wish is a light fluffy read with the added messaged I’d expected from the summary coming into this book. Actually, most of the book’s exactly what I expected. Left me feeling all sugary, can’t say I’m impressed, but can’t say I’m disappointed either.
June 30, 2012
I thought I knew what this book was going to be about based off the summary. Oh, it’s another one of those “Freaky Friday” switch-a-roo books, I mistakenly thought. The only real reason I picked it up is because Roxanne St Claire wrote it as her YA debut novel. But I was wrong to force it into the same category as those books that share a similar plot. I should have known better. Serves me right, actually, for doubting Roxanne.
The first thing I want to point out is the SCIENCE in this book. It was actually explained! It wasn’t your typical “magical artifact mysteriously found and then used with unexpected results”. No. There was SCIENCE involved. Thank you, Roxanne St Claire, for fulfilling a wish of mine I didn’t even know I had until now for the young adult genre. Basically, we need more alternative universes where people are AWARE of the other universes. Can someone start writing a SLIDERS type series for YA? Because I want it. You’d have at least one loyal reader and I’m sure I could recruit some other people to read it as well. (Also, ten points to you if you know what Sliders is without having to Google it.)
While the first part of the story went pretty much the way I’d thought it would go, the second half was a pleasant surprise. A boy in Annie’s new life where she’s Ayla now becomes a more prominent character and kind of steals the show. He’s such a sweetheart and helps Ayla figure out why she’s here and how to get her back to her old life, should she choose that one over her current dream-like one. I adored him and wanted to visit this alternative universe where he existed because where was he while I was in high school? No, seriously. Where was he?
Overall, I thought this was a good book and a new twist on a previously overdone plot. I honestly wasn’t sure it would all work out until the very end, but somehow Roxanne pulled it off and it works as a standalone. (I do love standalones.)
Don’t You Wish comes out July 10th by Random House Children’s Books.
The first thing I want to point out is the SCIENCE in this book. It was actually explained! It wasn’t your typical “magical artifact mysteriously found and then used with unexpected results”. No. There was SCIENCE involved. Thank you, Roxanne St Claire, for fulfilling a wish of mine I didn’t even know I had until now for the young adult genre. Basically, we need more alternative universes where people are AWARE of the other universes. Can someone start writing a SLIDERS type series for YA? Because I want it. You’d have at least one loyal reader and I’m sure I could recruit some other people to read it as well. (Also, ten points to you if you know what Sliders is without having to Google it.)
While the first part of the story went pretty much the way I’d thought it would go, the second half was a pleasant surprise. A boy in Annie’s new life where she’s Ayla now becomes a more prominent character and kind of steals the show. He’s such a sweetheart and helps Ayla figure out why she’s here and how to get her back to her old life, should she choose that one over her current dream-like one. I adored him and wanted to visit this alternative universe where he existed because where was he while I was in high school? No, seriously. Where was he?
Overall, I thought this was a good book and a new twist on a previously overdone plot. I honestly wasn’t sure it would all work out until the very end, but somehow Roxanne pulled it off and it works as a standalone. (I do love standalones.)
Don’t You Wish comes out July 10th by Random House Children’s Books.
July 19, 2012
Review originally posted on my blog, On books!
You know what they say... be careful what you wish for ('cause you just might get it).
Annie Nutter is plain and invisible. She wishes, more than anything, she could be rich and glamorous until one day, when she is zapped by one of her dad's inventions and lands in a parallel universe where she is perfect and privileged Ayla Monroe. Annie learns that privilege and popularity come with a price and that maybe Annie Nutter had a thing or two Ayla Monroe never will.
Don't You Wish was an extremely cute book that I'm sure I would've loved reading in the ninth grade. Annie, as Ayla, discovers what it's like to be popular and realises that being the topic of conversation and dating the 'it' boy isn't all that it's cracked up to be. I loved how thoroughly the intricacies of the cliques in high school were explored.
I loved the romance between Annie/Ayla and Charlie Zelinsky, branded the "homeless boy". It was easily the sweetest and most heartfelt part of the book. I also loved Annie's father's wacky inventions and the way the existence of parallel universes were explained. It definitely helped add colour and quirkiness to the premise!
I loved how the book made me think of the various points of my life when I'd thought, What if... The grass always seems greener on the other side and this book made me wonder if while we were so busy chasing after things that had crept out of our reach, we lost sight of things that were always there. It's so easy to take things for granted!
All in all, Don't You Wish was a sweet, fluffy and empowering book. Unfortunately, it was also a bit on the forgettable side. As lovely as the message was and as adorable as the main characters were, there were way too many stereotypical characters and situations that made the plot formulaic and predictable. Still, for what it's worth, Don't You Wish was wonderfully charming and left me smiling!
You know what they say... be careful what you wish for ('cause you just might get it).
Annie Nutter is plain and invisible. She wishes, more than anything, she could be rich and glamorous until one day, when she is zapped by one of her dad's inventions and lands in a parallel universe where she is perfect and privileged Ayla Monroe. Annie learns that privilege and popularity come with a price and that maybe Annie Nutter had a thing or two Ayla Monroe never will.
Don't You Wish was an extremely cute book that I'm sure I would've loved reading in the ninth grade. Annie, as Ayla, discovers what it's like to be popular and realises that being the topic of conversation and dating the 'it' boy isn't all that it's cracked up to be. I loved how thoroughly the intricacies of the cliques in high school were explored.
I loved the romance between Annie/Ayla and Charlie Zelinsky, branded the "homeless boy". It was easily the sweetest and most heartfelt part of the book. I also loved Annie's father's wacky inventions and the way the existence of parallel universes were explained. It definitely helped add colour and quirkiness to the premise!
I loved how the book made me think of the various points of my life when I'd thought, What if... The grass always seems greener on the other side and this book made me wonder if while we were so busy chasing after things that had crept out of our reach, we lost sight of things that were always there. It's so easy to take things for granted!
All in all, Don't You Wish was a sweet, fluffy and empowering book. Unfortunately, it was also a bit on the forgettable side. As lovely as the message was and as adorable as the main characters were, there were way too many stereotypical characters and situations that made the plot formulaic and predictable. Still, for what it's worth, Don't You Wish was wonderfully charming and left me smiling!
July 3, 2012
*A copy was provided by Random House Children's Books in exchange for an honest review*
Coming in to this book, I was a bit nervous. I thought it would be a typical chick-lit novel, not exciting at all. But it wasn't. It was actually almost the complete opposite.
This book is amazing! I can honestly say I have never read a book like this begore. It incorporates contemporary, romance, alternate universes, and science. Who knew, right?! It's just such an original idea. The writing was amazing, the story line was amazing, and the stagin was amazing. I loved how you get a taste of contemp and science in this book. And really, it's a very thought-provoking book. I'm sure that if they got the chance, everyone would love to be rich and popular and beautiful. But St. Claire wrote it in such a way that I don't really want to be those things. Sure, everything looks perfect and fine on the outside, but inside it's horrible.
But, one good thing about his book is that it's hysterical. Ayla has a friend named Bliss who isn't very smart, but she tries to sound it by using big words and catch-phrases. Here are a few of her attempts:
~Page 69, uncorrected ARC edition
~Page 126, uncorrected ARC edition
I swear, I coulnd't stop laughing, especially when I read the first one. So. Freaking. Funny!!
I've never written a review where there are two girls with the same soul, so I'm just going to call them Annie/Ayla. I really liked them. They were nice, smart, cool and always did what was right.
I also really liked the love interest, Charlie. He was so cute and nice and sweet, ughh, I just love him.
This book has got to be the most imaginative I've read in forever, and I thouroughly enjoyed the ride.
Coming in to this book, I was a bit nervous. I thought it would be a typical chick-lit novel, not exciting at all. But it wasn't. It was actually almost the complete opposite.
This book is amazing! I can honestly say I have never read a book like this begore. It incorporates contemporary, romance, alternate universes, and science. Who knew, right?! It's just such an original idea. The writing was amazing, the story line was amazing, and the stagin was amazing. I loved how you get a taste of contemp and science in this book. And really, it's a very thought-provoking book. I'm sure that if they got the chance, everyone would love to be rich and popular and beautiful. But St. Claire wrote it in such a way that I don't really want to be those things. Sure, everything looks perfect and fine on the outside, but inside it's horrible.
But, one good thing about his book is that it's hysterical. Ayla has a friend named Bliss who isn't very smart, but she tries to sound it by using big words and catch-phrases. Here are a few of her attempts:
"My expertee knows no boundage."
~Page 69, uncorrected ARC edition
"Oh. My. God...you really are psychopathetic."
~Page 126, uncorrected ARC edition
I swear, I coulnd't stop laughing, especially when I read the first one. So. Freaking. Funny!!
I've never written a review where there are two girls with the same soul, so I'm just going to call them Annie/Ayla. I really liked them. They were nice, smart, cool and always did what was right.
I also really liked the love interest, Charlie. He was so cute and nice and sweet, ughh, I just love him.
This book has got to be the most imaginative I've read in forever, and I thouroughly enjoyed the ride.
April 5, 2016
The book was provided by the publisher Random House Children's Books through NetGalley for an honest review with no compensation provided.
Annie Nutter is plain, nerdy and invisible at school. One stormy day her father, an inventor creates a machine that lets people make beautiful photos out of celebrity's facial features. She dreams of being beautiful, rich and popular, and goes to bed. When she wakes up in the morning, she's in a different home. Her house has turned into a mansion, her body has curved out in all the right places, her teeth and hair are perfect and when she looks into the mirror, a beauty is staring back at her. Her dream has come true, although her name is Alya Monroe. Her appearance might have changed but her personality stayed the same. Does beauty and money mean perfect happiness?
This book had all the teenage clichés that most movies have. Average plain girl wants to be beautiful and rich, but what she wants most in the world is to go back to being herself. Through out this novel Annie goes through the necessary peer pressures that trend experience and it all sounds fun and cool but once she starts to realize she'd rather be nice than mean, that's when I start to grin. There's a moral to this story. Beauty and wealth won't make you happy. I loved it.
Cute, funny, and engaging, it felt like 13 Going on 30 meets Freaky Friday! I thought the ending was just so perfect and that's the way I like it.
Rating 4/5
Quotes
"Yes you are pretty, and when you pictured perfect, you came damn close, but the part of you I like the most is inside."—Charlie (238)
Annie Nutter is plain, nerdy and invisible at school. One stormy day her father, an inventor creates a machine that lets people make beautiful photos out of celebrity's facial features. She dreams of being beautiful, rich and popular, and goes to bed. When she wakes up in the morning, she's in a different home. Her house has turned into a mansion, her body has curved out in all the right places, her teeth and hair are perfect and when she looks into the mirror, a beauty is staring back at her. Her dream has come true, although her name is Alya Monroe. Her appearance might have changed but her personality stayed the same. Does beauty and money mean perfect happiness?
This book had all the teenage clichés that most movies have. Average plain girl wants to be beautiful and rich, but what she wants most in the world is to go back to being herself. Through out this novel Annie goes through the necessary peer pressures that trend experience and it all sounds fun and cool but once she starts to realize she'd rather be nice than mean, that's when I start to grin. There's a moral to this story. Beauty and wealth won't make you happy. I loved it.
Cute, funny, and engaging, it felt like 13 Going on 30 meets Freaky Friday! I thought the ending was just so perfect and that's the way I like it.
Rating 4/5
Quotes
"Yes you are pretty, and when you pictured perfect, you came damn close, but the part of you I like the most is inside."—Charlie (238)
July 6, 2012
I enjoyed this book far more that what I thought I would. This story is a big "What if?" You know what if I was rich instead of poor? What if my mom married another guy, what kind of daughter would I have been? What if I had a whole new life and wasn't the same? The answer to all of these questions and more are well explained. And the answers aren't quite what you expect.
I really enjoyed the aspect of waking up to a whole new life. New friends. New looks. New school. A whole new outlook of what you wish you had. I admit, for Annie, it was easy to what this role. Being raised in a strictly budget home, being rich all the sudden has it perks. Annie had to really step back and look at the whole picture to decide just what she wanted.
The plot of the book is well paced and addicting. I love that Alya is Annie but different. To see the people around Ayla act different cause of how different Ayla is funny. Annie sees how Alya really is and turns heads. Annie is sweet, kind, and thoughtful. Changing people's mind about Alya is hard work, but definitly worth it.
The love interest plays out so good. I adore that Alya is a whole new person with a new outlook. Her being nice and forming real relationships gives Annie a real perspective of how she would be if she was rich. Annie makes right choices and good sacrifces for those she loves.
Don't You Wish is cute story of a whole new life we all wish we could have. One with a life, luxury, and friends, but in the end, it may not be all that it seems. Good elements and excellent life lessons, it's stands out from what is on the market. Don't You Wish is awesome!
I really enjoyed the aspect of waking up to a whole new life. New friends. New looks. New school. A whole new outlook of what you wish you had. I admit, for Annie, it was easy to what this role. Being raised in a strictly budget home, being rich all the sudden has it perks. Annie had to really step back and look at the whole picture to decide just what she wanted.
The plot of the book is well paced and addicting. I love that Alya is Annie but different. To see the people around Ayla act different cause of how different Ayla is funny. Annie sees how Alya really is and turns heads. Annie is sweet, kind, and thoughtful. Changing people's mind about Alya is hard work, but definitly worth it.
The love interest plays out so good. I adore that Alya is a whole new person with a new outlook. Her being nice and forming real relationships gives Annie a real perspective of how she would be if she was rich. Annie makes right choices and good sacrifces for those she loves.
Don't You Wish is cute story of a whole new life we all wish we could have. One with a life, luxury, and friends, but in the end, it may not be all that it seems. Good elements and excellent life lessons, it's stands out from what is on the market. Don't You Wish is awesome!
September 29, 2012
See full review here!
It took me a while to read this one. I set it aside for a bit to read something else and came back to it. I had to read quickly because I was annoyed most of the time with this one. It's an ARC, so it needs editing. A lot of it. I wasn't really a fan of the MC until maybe the middle of the novel. And I couldn't tell her age half the time. When she's with Ryder, some mature things are talked about, but then she seems younger the rest of the time. Maybe that's just me.
I will say that I liked the very last page a lot. It put a smile on my face. I was wondering how it would all work out, but I think Roxanne did it just right. I really liked Charlie, but I didn't like Annie/Ayla as much as I would have liked. She was kind of annoying with "knowing" stuff all the time. I'm glad that she was trying to make a difference, and hopefully she did make a big change at that school.
The story is creative, even if it's an old idea. It's a bit of a fresh take on it. I'd like to see what happens to everyone in the end. We only get one side of it. I wanted a bit more, even though this book is long enough. I would have preferred to read a finished copy though. Maybe that would help change my mind.
It took me a while to read this one. I set it aside for a bit to read something else and came back to it. I had to read quickly because I was annoyed most of the time with this one. It's an ARC, so it needs editing. A lot of it. I wasn't really a fan of the MC until maybe the middle of the novel. And I couldn't tell her age half the time. When she's with Ryder, some mature things are talked about, but then she seems younger the rest of the time. Maybe that's just me.
I will say that I liked the very last page a lot. It put a smile on my face. I was wondering how it would all work out, but I think Roxanne did it just right. I really liked Charlie, but I didn't like Annie/Ayla as much as I would have liked. She was kind of annoying with "knowing" stuff all the time. I'm glad that she was trying to make a difference, and hopefully she did make a big change at that school.
The story is creative, even if it's an old idea. It's a bit of a fresh take on it. I'd like to see what happens to everyone in the end. We only get one side of it. I wanted a bit more, even though this book is long enough. I would have preferred to read a finished copy though. Maybe that would help change my mind.
August 22, 2012
Concept/Ideas: 5/5
Storyline/Plot: 5/5
Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 4/5
Amazing. One of my tops reads of 2012.
Personally, I thought the concept for this bok was amazing. It was so unique. Who wouldn't be eager to check out a book about a girl who got thrown into another dimension and went from "loser to popular/rich" in a flash? I just thought the whole concept of switching bodies and traveling through dimensions was so cool.
The writing was great. I find it easy, fun, suspenseful, and girly. There was just a perfect balance of fun and serious. Also, I loved how the author incoperated science into it, even though it may or may not be accurate.
The storyline was fact-paced, and full of action, heartbreak, and coming to realize that not everything is greener on the other side. It really goes to show that although something may seem perfect, there could be a lot going on underneath that's ugly and not all that it seems to be.
Overall, I can't say too much without giving it all away, but I most definitely reccommend this book to anyone considering it. It was amazing, and not your average YA book. I mean, it is... But with a pretty damn good twist!
Storyline/Plot: 5/5
Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 4/5
Amazing. One of my tops reads of 2012.
Personally, I thought the concept for this bok was amazing. It was so unique. Who wouldn't be eager to check out a book about a girl who got thrown into another dimension and went from "loser to popular/rich" in a flash? I just thought the whole concept of switching bodies and traveling through dimensions was so cool.
The writing was great. I find it easy, fun, suspenseful, and girly. There was just a perfect balance of fun and serious. Also, I loved how the author incoperated science into it, even though it may or may not be accurate.
The storyline was fact-paced, and full of action, heartbreak, and coming to realize that not everything is greener on the other side. It really goes to show that although something may seem perfect, there could be a lot going on underneath that's ugly and not all that it seems to be.
Overall, I can't say too much without giving it all away, but I most definitely reccommend this book to anyone considering it. It was amazing, and not your average YA book. I mean, it is... But with a pretty damn good twist!
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