As You WIsh by Jackson Pearce

Publisher: Harper Teen
Pub.Date: September 1st 2009
Age Range: 12 and up
Pages: 304
Format: hardcover
Source Of Copy: contest prize

Ever since Viola's boyfriend broke up with her, she has spent her days silently wishing—to have someone love her again and, more importantly, to be

...moreEver since Viola's boyfriend broke up with her, she has spent her days silently wishing—to have someone love her again and, more importantly, to belong again—until one day she inadvertently summons a young genie out of his world and into her own. He will remain until she makes three wishes.

Jinn is anxious to return home, but Viola is terrified of wishing, afraid she will not wish for the right thing, the thing that will make her truly happy. As the two spend time together, the lines between master and servant begin to blur, and soon Jinn can't deny that he's falling for Viola. But it's only after Viola makes her first wish that she realizes she's in love with Jinn as well . . . and that if she wishes twice more, he will disappear from her life—and her world—forever.

A sweet, lovely and thrilling debut book that will warm your heart, a story with the "be careful with what you wish for" theme that you can hardly refuse to read.

I enjoyed this book. It's fun, it's lighthearted but not shallow. If you're in a bad mood and want to cheer yourself up you definitely should pick it up.

I've not read many stories about jinns or genies but I think As You Wish has a very fresh setup. Everything feels sudden yet it makes sense: how Viola summons Jinn, how she makes her wishes and how they grow attached to each other. It's written in both main characters' points of view and I find that pretty easy and interesting to follow the story.

There are so many things I love about the story but what I want to mention the most is world of jinns. How the author builds it is amazing, especially with random details like flower deliveries. I especially love how she explains why jinns and human live in separate worlds through a myth and how Jinn realize how boring his world is after meeting Viola.

I don't think Viola is a very impressive character but she still has qualities that make her shine through the story. She's sweet, she's considerate and she's funny at times. My favorite parts about her are her thoughts about wishes. It shows clearly to the readers that although we always wants our wishes to be granted, nothing will work for us if we don't accomplish the things ourselves. And sometimes it feels like you always know what you want, but when a jinn comes with three wishes for you, maybe you don't want anything at all.

My on complaint on this story is that Viola and Jinn fall in love too fast. It'd be nicer for them to get to know each other more or just be best friends at the end because somehow their love is still a little forced to me even though they're super duper cute together.

Rating: 4/5