Twenty Wishes

A Blossom Street Book (Blossom Street, Book 5)

By: Debbie Macomber

Narrated by: Tanya Eby Sirois

Anne Marie Roche wants to find happiness again. At 38, her life's not what she'd expected - she's childless, a recent widow, alone. She owns a successful bookstore on Seattle's Blossom Street, but despite her accomplishments, there's a feeling of emptiness.

On Valentine's Day, Anne Marie and several other widows get together to celebrate...what? Hope, possibility, the future. They each begin a list of 20 wishes, things they always wanted to do but never did. Anne Marie's list starts with "Find one good thing about life". It includes learning to knit, doing good for someone else, falling in love again.

She begins to act on her wishes, and when she volunteers at a local school, an eight-year-old girl named Ellen enters her life. It's a relationship that becomes far more involving than Anne Marie intended. It also becomes far more important than she ever imagined.

As Ellen helps Anne Marie complete her list of wishes, they both learn that wishes can come true - but not necessarily in the way you expect.

©2008 Debbie Macomber (P)2008 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Macomber's assured storytelling and affirming narrative [are] as welcoming as your favorite easy chair." ( Publishers Weekly)

another great one

Again Debbie has done it, I love to hear about all of the local areas and the women come alife again.

plot too predictable

This author does great job of developing the characters and their situations but the plot and ending were too predictable.

Great Idea!

I liked the concept of writing down 20 wishes in a notebook so you can check them off as they come true.

An uplifting, morale boosting book.

I really enjoyed this gentle, beautifully paced novel -- well, so much so, I went back and listened again.

What would you write down if you had twenty wishes? It's quite a question and, as the book suggests, not easy to do.

A group of widows decide to approach life positively and meet regularly to support each other as they devise and follow through their own twenty wishes.

This book gives heart to both the young and the old -- there's romance, laughter and family love. The characters are vibrant and the details of every day home life are familiar and reassuring. Yes, I'll use the well worn phrase, 'heart warming'.

I recommend this book as a rewarding listen in itself -- and as always, Tanya Eby Sirois' reading is excellent -- but also could be helpful for anyone who doesn't quite know how to proceed with life -- the main point is that by just taking on new dreams, other life doors were opened.

Mature Women explore their futures

Nice story of a group of widows each learning to move forward, make new friends and cope with their past. Good Christian writing, solid family values. Shows independent women in strong roles and in business.