Sophia Money-Coutts

What are you wishing for this Christmas? ’Feel-good and enormous fun’ Sophie Kinsella, Sunday Times bestselling author of Love Your Life ‘Full of wit, warmth and heart’ Beth O’Leary, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Flatshare

The Wish List

What are you wishing for this Christmas? 'Feel-good and enormous fun' Sophie Kinsella, Sunday Times bestselling author of Love Your Life 'Full of wit, warmth and heart' Beth O'Leary, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Flatshare 'You want me to write a list? Like a shopping list?' 'Exactly. But for what you want from a man' Florence Fairfax might have been single for quite a while - well, forever, actually - but she isn't lonely. She loves her job at the little bookshop in Chelsea and her beloved cat Marmalade who keeps her company at night. She's perfectly happy, thank you. So when Florence meets an eccentric love coach who asks her to write a wish list describing her perfect man, she refuses to take it seriously. Until later that week, Rory, a handsome blond man with the sexual athleticism of James Bond she asked for just happens to walk into the bookshop... Rory seems to tick all of the boxes on Florence's list. But is she about to discover there's more to love than being perfect on paper? *** Your favourite authors LOVE The Wish List: 'Enormous fun, feel-good and full of winsome, funny characters. It's a delicious, warm, witty book, perfect to escape into' Sophie Kinsella, Love Your Life 'Queen of the smart rom-com. Full of wit, warmth and a truly sweet, satisfying happy ever after' Daisy Buchanan, Insatiable 'Full of wit, warmth and heart' Beth O'Leary, The Flatshare 'Funny, touching and totally addictive' Zara Stoneley, The First Date 'Impossibly hilarious yet hopeful and heart-warming to book' Abbie Greaves, The Silent Treatment 'So clever, funny and brilliantly relatable. I loved, loved loved it! Lucy Vine, Hot Mess 'Funny and biting, I couldn't get enough' Laura Jane Williams, The Love Square 'Funny and romantic. The perfect escapist read!' Cressida McLaughlin, The Cornish Cream Tea Summer 'Whipsmart and properly funny, I laughed from the first page' Alex Brown, A Postcard From Italy

Arabella Mai Wallis

I devoured this book in a day and just could not put it down. I loved the pacing, the storylines. the characters and the writing style was so enjoyable to read. There was a little part that made me sob but other than that I had so much fun reading this book and am so unbelievably happy with the way it ended. I definitely want to read more of Sophia Money-Coutts work in the near future.

Anika | @chaptersofmay

I really want to love this book. But it disappointed me! The idea of an unlucky-in-love bookworm, with a pet cat, and two barmy half-sisters sounds like a recipe for hilarity. However, I cringed more than I laughed, which isn’t a good sign. A one-star rating for The Wish List would be too harsh, because it wasn’t a bad book. But sadly, it just didn’t make me smile as much as I had hoped.

The book follows the life of Florence, who finds comfort in routine, order, and even numbers. Constant control makes her feel safe. She obsessively counts anything and everything to keep her anxiety at ease. And it has to be even numbers. People, miles, stairs, chairs, chips, keyboard keys, cars, minutes, steps and so on. However, I expected Florence’s counting to play a much bigger role in her day-to-day life. It felt important in some chapters and non-existent in others.

I love the premise of The Wish List. Any book that fits the coming-of-age narrative is usually a very charming one. I really like the fact that Florence’s dream man appears the moment she completes her list. It sets the tale up for a really gratifying journey. Plus, Sophia Money-Coutts has a friendly and inviting tone to her writing that makes it very easy to absorb. 

Tragically, The Wish List is very predictable. Sometimes that’s a good thing, it can add a level of comfort to chick lit reads. But in this case, it pushed me to want to find the ending and move on.
The biggest loss for me in this book is the characters. I can’t remember any of their names. None of them stood out to me as overly likeable, so there was no inclination to really invest in their lives. The characters I didn’t like ruined every chapter they appeared in. And sadly, Florence’s personality fell flat. The book is told from her point of view, and I expected a little more charisma. The romance also felt stale. I would have really liked to experience a refreshing journey between two people in this contemporary novel, but I never found that.

Another struggle for me is the pacing of this book. It has a very relaxed start, the reader is introduced to the concept of a wish list straight away. Then the narrative slows to the point of me wanting to skip ahead. While some of Florence’s misadventures are entertaining, a couple of chapters didn’t seem that valuable to the overall story. Then the ending seemed to appear and disappear way too quickly to be fully appreciated. When it comes to books like this, happy endings can be the best part, and I feel like this wasn’t taken advantage of.

While The Wish List is a light summer read, it lacks the entertainment factor that holds my attention. The author’s voice has a likeable warmth, but the romance and characters let this read down.

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"Florence Fairfax isn't lonely. She loves her job at the little bookshop in Chelsea and her beloved cat Marmalade keeps her company at night. She might have been single for quite a while well, forever actually, if anyone's asking but she's perfectly happy, thank you. And then Florence meets eccentric love coach Gwendolyn, and everything changes. When Gwendolyn makes Florence write a wish list describing her perfect man, Florence refuses to take it seriously. Finding someone who likes cats, has the sexual athleticism of James Bond and can overlook her 'counting' habit? Impossible! Until, later that week, a handsome blond man asks for help in the bookshop. Rory seems to fit the list perfectly. But is he 'the one', or simply too good to be true? Florence is about to find out that her criteria for Mr Right aren't as important as she thought and that perhaps she's been looking for love in all the wrong places."--Publisher.

The Wish List

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