Wish Club: A Novel

by Kim Strickland

Claudia, Lindsay, Gail, Mara, and Jill are about to find out that the old adage is true—they really should be careful what they wish for. At first their book club was like any talking, drinking wine, and maybe even discussing the book they’ve read. But when they read a novel about witchcraft and jokingly try one of the spells . . . it works. Naturally the women are freaked out at—they’re not witches! But what could be the harm in lighting some candles and making little wishes? Everyone has wishes—the perfect man, more time to yourself, a little extra cash . . .

When their book club morphs into “Wish Club,” the ladies find their real gift is for conjuring trouble. Their wishes start going awry, and they find themselves in strange, hilarious, and in some cases even dangerous predicaments. But as they search for someone who might be able to help, each of the women begins to discover that she may have the ability to make her own wishes come true.

Genres: Book Club, Chick Lit, Fiction, Fantasy, Magic

328 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Kim Strickland lives in Chicago with her husband, a 20-year-old Plecostomus and a dog. Her three children have all left the nest, but she wishes one of them would return to take back that fish.

Reviews

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have had this book on my TBR for 11 years, so finally reading it felt like a huge accomplishment. I’m really happy that it held up to what younger me expected of it - cute and funny and a little sappy, fun magic, interesting relationships (friendships and marriages both) and a good gentle twist.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, let me say that I was drawn to this book because of the cover. It was so gorgeously colored, and looked so interesting that I bought it immediately (oh, and did I mention that it was cheap as well?). Anyway, it was a bit slow in the beginning, perhaps it's just me, but I found it a bit difficult to keep track of all the different characters.

There are five women, Claudia, Lindsay, Gail, Mara and Jill who are in a book club together. One of the last books they read was about witchcraft, and just for fun, they decided to do a few chants. The first thing they tried was a chant to stop the rain, and astonishingly, the rain actually stopped! Of course, it might not have been the result of their chanting, but they get spooked out anyway. They try it out a second time, this time, wishing to cure Mara's diabetic cat, and the wish comes true yet again.

They decide to rename their book club to the Wish Club, and start making wishes to help themselves in their lives. Claudia, who is a school teacher, wishes to have a baby as she's been trying to get pregnant with her husband for the past year or so. Lindsay is a rich socialite with plenty of money at her disposal, but she feels like she never fits in with her "rich" friends. So she wishes to lose weight and feel like she can fit in. Gail is a mother to three children, and she wishes that she can have more time to herself. Mara, who once harbored dreams of becoming a singer wishes that she can have a singing career. Lastly we have Jill, who is an artist. She wishes for creativity, and the perfect man.

In the beginning, everything seems to be going smoothly, with their wishes coming true. However, after awhile, they start discovering that their wishes aren't going as well as they expected, bringing up the point that you should be careful what you wish for!

An enjoyable, light read.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this while on vacation - a fun, quick read for the summer. I enjoyed getting to know all of the characters and especially enjoyed the magical twist on book clubs. The story is a modern day fairy tale containing characters with good intentions, just a little mid-life attitude (the grass is always greener), and key life lessons - be careful what you wish for!

[Sandee · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first started reading it, I told my DIL it was an easy book to, put down. However, after a few chapters I got into it. It’s a silly, fun book. I think it would make an entertaining movie. I guess more of a chick flick.

[Billie Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read. Starts a bit flat, but I was glad I kept reading. From the title the first thing that comes to mind is 'be careful what you wish for' which of course is always a good reminder, but it was not the only lesson the characters learned. It's nice to read a positive novel about women helping women and how book clubs are not always what they seem.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable. You find a little bit of yourself in the characters - it's easy to relate to their normal life struggles. Of course, they face their issues a little differently than you might expect. This book will make you remember the old saying, "be careful what you wish for." This is the author's first novel. I can't wait for the next one!

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've always wondered what went on at my wife's book club. I knew about the wine. I had no idea about the other stuff. I really enjoyed this first novel from Kim Strickland. The characters are interesting, the setting (sweet home Chicago) is great, and it provides a cautionary tale for us all (I won't spoil it by saying what that is). It was a fun, quick read. Highly recommended.

[Shelby Hearn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light read about a few lost women who try their hands at witchcraft in an attempt to solve all of their problems. After a few spells go awry they drop the magic and learn that they don't need to say a few rhymes to set their life on track.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took off very slow, but I got to the middle of the book and it just got crazy! Cute read, fun and it really surprises you once you get past the introductory redundancy.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Women get involved in 'wishcraft' and have unexpected results. Very good read!

[marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book club learns to make their wishes come true - and then things start to go awry. A fun read.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love it so far... Nice conversational tone!

[Sarah B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was another fun, entertaining read and I needed that as I read this at the same time as I was reading about a tragedy. It's about five woman who are in a book club and one day for fun they decide to try a magic spell. To their shock it works! So of course they decide to do more spells!

Now the next bit is a bit predictable: things go wrong! And how horrible wrong too! The author got quite imaginative with this bit and she cooked up all sorts of horrible messes for the characters. It can be a tad humorous too. And creative. Some of the things I did not see coming at all. And the climax...I did not expect that at all! Some real thrills and scares!

The book is also about the power of belief and also about superstition. And that yes, Wicca is a religion.

All in all it's a fun read.

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid book with a classic story of witchcraft gone wrong for good people. It was all a little predictable, even how the wishes went wrong. I also got lost in who the characters were and what they had wished for. None of them seemed very unique, but that was probably the point - ordinary, good people try something new and it all backfires.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Up until about the last third, I really wasn't enjoying it much. Seemed way too out there, and hard to keep track of the characters and plot. But towards the end, it came together well (after they actually met Greta...) and had a good resolution and message. The book club theme is less enjoyable than the friendship theme. The author obviously did her Wicca research...

[Cassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a very slow start, which tempted me to stop reading, the book picked up with an interesting plot. Well written, with flashes of real insight into the relationships women share, it did become bogged down at certain points which detracted from my overall enjoyment.

[Alison · Rating 2 out of 5]

the 2 stars is misleading. i probably would've given 2.5

the story moved along well enough (although I found myself skimming a lot towards the middle) but I found the ending to be 1) way too convenient to be believeable and 2) the very last chapter (updates on girls) was so amazingly predictable. Too bad the author couldn't have written in a few unexpected twists to the girls endings....would've earned another star from me.

[Edna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Highly disappointing. Took me forever to get through and not even worth it. A bunch of women with perfectly good lives mess it all up by making "wishes" (doing witchcraft) and can't understand why it went so badly.

[Rita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast read, many characters a bit too confusing and hard to keep track of who was who. It kept my interest. A bit odd with the "magic" thrown in, I wasn't expecting that. Harry potter of adult chic lit?

[Shannon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Poorly written. Lots of different threads of a story that ultimately were not explained at the end. Poorly explained sub-plots. Learned my lesson - when you see a book has a high rating, don't forget to see how many people actually reviewed the book. Ooops.

[Karina · Rating 2 out of 5]

It fluctuated too much between the five women's point of views so that I didn't really get to know any of them well enough and was therefore confused as to their stories and personas.

[Ellen · Rating 1 out of 5]

(Judy)

[Sandora · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wasn't impressed at all. I thought the writing was weak. This book was a waste of time.

[Mel · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the worst book I've read in a long time. Total waste of time and money.

[Theresa Roma · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought this book new at Barnes and Noble for $1. How bad could it be? Well, I WANT MY DOLLAR BACK!!!!!!!!! The cover is nice 'tho.

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a bad book, interesting topic. I just had trouble with the writing style- seemed very slow moving and rough.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read it for my book club-just not my cup of tea plus the characters seemed forced as did the Chicago area references. Very flat.

[Cynthia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wish it was a better book.

[Bibliobabe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book club turns into a "wish" club (it sounds better than witches coven) with far reaching unintended consequences. Not as lighthearted as the description implies. 072607