ARC Review: Roxanne St. Claire - Don't You Wish

Roxanne St. Claire - Don't You Wish

• Pub Date: July 10, 2012

• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

• Format: Hardcover, 368 pages

• Age Range: Young Adult

• Source: Net Galley

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 exhilirating . . . 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.

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.

Bottom line: It's up to you to try this one. It's fun but not a must read.

Rating:

3/5 book sharks