The Wish Lists
by J.M. Spade
Fly-by-the-Seat-of-Her-Pants Ellie has been living off her father’s fortune for years. Learning he has cancer pushes her into a career change despite being in her thirties. When her first night shift on the palliative care floor ends in disaster, she finds herself alone and feeling lost. Will meeting the love of her life change this?
As she starts over, her patients help her find her purpose and Asher helps her find herself again. Will the secrets she keeps destroy it all?
Momma Says: 3.5 stars⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Wish Lists was a bit different than what I expected, but that's not a bad thing. I expected a romance with a nurse at its center, but it's more a story about a nurse, and the romance feels more like a subplot. The story is told from Ellie's perspective, and she is definitely an intriguing character. Most of the book deals with Ellie's nursing career, which she came to in her 30's, and for her, it's not about needing to work, it's about finding a purpose.
As far as the romance - well, I really never got that vibe from this book. We're told that Asher and Ellie love each other, and he does some truly romantic things, but I felt like I was told more than shown. I just didn't see that chemistry between them. They talk, but too often it's more like an outline to tell the reader what they talked about rather than any real get to know you type of conversations. Speaking of Asher, he is likable, but he's a little bit too perfect. He trusts completely, to the point of blind trust even when he should be asking questions, and he seems perfectly okay with Ellie only giving half-answers and putting off giving the information. Granted, her secrets don't really affect the relationship, but the morsels he gets as the story moves along would make me ask more questions, not less.
Romantic relationship aside, this story was more about Ellie's growth and generosity as she finds her purpose, and that is a truly heartwarming tale. It's also what I liked best about this one. Ellie's interactions with her patients were a mix of humor and heartbreak. There were a few parts that were a little more detailed than I needed when it came to patient care, particularly a couple of scenes concerning bodily functions, but what I did like was the conversations with the patients. Ellie took the time to get to know her patients, even the ones who were harder to deal with than others, and those scenes gave insight into the character.
All in all, The Wish Lists is more medical drama than romance, but this one has a different kind of love story, one of a woman learning about herself as she shows compassion and generosity to patients at the end of their lives. There are a few grammatical errors and typos, and while they were noticeable, they didn't diminish the overall uplifting feel of this story. It's a solid mix of the bad and the good of working in the medical field, and it's one of those stories that leaves you with a warm feeling in your chest.
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