What You Wish for

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely horrible
Review: After nearly being bludgeoned to death by her husband Daniel, Helen Ward decides to take her destiny into her hands - when her husband breaks off her tolerance with a vicious attack on her pet dog Lucie. She escapes and seeks refuge in a secret shelter operated by Isabel Tyger, a heiress who with her will decides to keep abused women safe by changing their identity. Helen is touched - and she assumes the identity of Nancy Baker to start a new life. Everything turns out fine as Sam Tolliver enters her life and her Internet business is taking flight - but the embittered Daniel is tenacious - for his job is lost and he wants to get his hands on the fortune that Helen has inherited after Isabel's death....

WHAT YOU WISH FOR approaches spousal abuse with sensitivity - from the gritty fate of Helen, but fails to engage with insight. The nightmarish encounter and the fears are related with intensity but the interest flags - after Ms. Michaels shifts focus on Isabel. The story is predictible and it's only till the ending showdown things progresses - there is little excitement to sustain interest. The romance is light and fluffy but not enough to spice up the situation.

It is an average effort from Ms. Michaels - the middle part of the story is monotonous and drags without any climax - but for those who experiences spousal abuse, it is likely to reflect your situation - while other readers may feel distant. Sometimes stories need a dose of reality as well as some drama to enliven the atmosphere - and probably more of that is what readers wish for.

Rating:
Summary: Loved It
Review: I am glad I did not let the previous negative reviews stop me from reading this book. I found it to a very good read. The book begins with,Helen, a beat-down battered wife who is married to a controling over bearing abusive husband(Daniel). Daniel has destroyed Helen's self-confidence, her self-worth, her self-esteem, among many other things. He finally almost kills her dog,Lucie. Helen loves her pet like Lucie was Helen's child. One of the turning point of the the story is when Helen runs from Daniel to protect Lucie's life.

Helen comes in contact with people who can help her rebuild her life. They give her the opportunity to regain all Daniel has taken from her. I love the parts of the book that show how strong Helen becomes. The ending is equal to a fair tale story of love and happiness.

Rating:
Summary: Be careful
Review: I am not familiar with the abused wife syndrome. It was chilling to read about what Helen was going through with her husband when he attacked her. It was heartbreaking to read how she felt worthless, and he felt justified. But the story around them did not hold up. Interesting, but not plausible. All the pieces fit together too neatly, and the ending was just a fairy tale. (Poor girl inherits millions and makes up with her estranged mother.) The characters' relationships with each other were not clearly explored. We understood why Helen's benefactor loved animals, but we had no clue why she befriended battered women. And Helen's decisions when trying to flee her husband are just plain stupid. I like stories with happy endings, but I want them to be believable. This book was a good read, but the ending was just too tidy. By the way, I lived in NJ for many years and it almost never snows before Christmas.

Rating:
Summary: Must read--could not put down!
Review: This book is great. I am an animal lover just like the characters in the book so it touched my heart! I could not put the book down-- I was asked, "Can't get your nose out of the book?". You can't go wrong by purchasing this book.

Rating:
Summary: Moving and Riveting
Review: This is a two day read. It touches the soul and spirit of a woman in need of renewing her self-respect and finding the courage to do so. I have read very few of Michaels' books, but this was enjoyable reading and can be listed as a "couldn't put it down" reading.

Rating:
Summary: this is a MUST read
Review: This is one of Michaels best books! I couldn't put it down. The characters and plot are so real! I felt that I was right next to Helen and her little dog Lucy. This is a book I will definitly read again! A MUST READ!

Rating:
Summary: Drivel
Review: This is one of the worst books that I've read in a long time, maybe ever. The characters in this book were all stupid and boring, and those with animals cared more about their pets than they did themselves. The main character (whose name I have already forgotten and don't care to look up) was a wimp with a comically, one-dimensionally evil husband who physically and mentally abused her. I guess that he was there to balance out those who she met later in the book, who were comically, one-dimensionally good. Anyway, the woman finally hightailed it out of her marriage only when her husband hit her dog. After she left, she got lucky in the most annoying ways possible; did this woman actually earn anything that she got once she moved? I have my doubts. Being a victim will get you only so far, but she definitely coasted on her status for the entire book. She was lame and uninteresting, as were her friends and her "troubles"; plus, she was so DUMB. People who care so little about their own self-preservation do not deserve to be cast in books as heroes. Fern Michaels did not do anybody any favors by writing such an insultingly bad book. Why isn't there a way to give zero stars?

Rating:
Summary: Great, riveting start but can't hold it for long
Review: When I first started to read this book I found myself unable to put it down. The brutality of the husband and how Helen escapes was great. But, unfortunately, the story started to fall flat after a while. I really had a hard time believing how smart those two dogs, Max and Lucie were. The last straw was when Helen was loading the two dogs in the car. Max (THE DOG) buckled in Lucie (THE DOG) and then himself!!! Come on! I don't care how smart a dog he is supposed to be, there is no way he can do this! I was amazed that he didn't drive the car also. Have to agree with other reviewers that some of the dialogue was just plain silly and sometimes hard to follow. Too bad...the beginning had so much promise.