Art of Wishing by Lindsay Ribar [Review]

4 out of 5 Robots!

  

The Art of Wishing by Lindsay Ribar
Series: Art of Wishing #1
Genre: YA Paranormal
Release: March 21, 2013
Hardcover:  314 Pages
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers
My Copy: Purchased
Reviewer: Shannon
Buy the Book: Amazon

Book Summary:

He can grant her wishes, but only she can save his life.

Margo McKenna has a plan for just about everything, from landing the lead in her high school play to getting into a good college. So when she finds herself in possession of a genie's ring and the chance to make three wishes, she doesn't know what to do. Why should she put her life into someone else's hands?

But Oliver is more than just a genie -- he's also a sophomore at Margo's high school, and he's on the run from a murderer. As he and Margo grow closer, she discovers that it will take more than three wishes to save him.

A whole lot more.

(Courtesy of the Publisher)

Shannon's Thoughts:

I kind of randomly came across this book and the genie premise intrigued me.  But I almost gave up in the first third of the book.  Margo wants to get the lead in her school play, but it goes to someone else that she doesn't think is very good.  She spends a lot of time whining about this and it was getting really old, really fast.  But I'm glad I hung on because things got a lot more interesting (and darker) about half way through. 

I really liked the genie lore and the fact that Margo didn't just except everything once she learned the truth.  I liked that some things were really hard for her to accept.  Ribar does a nice job of skewering popular culture's conceptions of genies.  I liked the darker turn the book took and the ending surprised me.  I would stopped reading if I had to listen to Margo go on and on about the musical.  Theater drama, I care not for thee. 

Overall, I surprisingly fun and interesting series in a lesser trod paranormal genre (although it seems genies are making a comeback in 2014?)  The second book, The Fourth Wish, just released and I am excited to see what happens next.