Review: A Stunning Romance - Just Like A Modern Fairytale!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 01 29, 2014
THE STORY:Wow this story was absolutely beautiful. It actually almost felt like a modern fairytale retelling in some ways. Nina is sort of like the Cinderella in her world, poor and horrible neglected by her junkie prostitute mother. And then we have Prince Charming, Isaac, the wealthy popular boy with the beautiful smile. We get to see some flash backs to when they met in high school. Nina was the poor hispanic girl, who was on scholarship to a wealthy selective school. She was teased and tormented with racial insults everyday and I was at the point of tears, reading some of the things she has to deal with. Isaac was the only person in her life that showed her any kindness, and the simple act of him giving her a cookie at lunch was touching. But after being Child Services place with a new family and change her name to protect her, she fears she will never see Isaac again. Isaac is crushed and more than that he's tired of his family's social and racial hypocrisy - leaving his family behind for college he changes his name in hopes of building a happier life away from them9 years, and 2 new names later, Irene and Terrence still haven't forgotten each other. While reading to children at the library, Irene gets the shock of her life when she sees Isaac walk in. But when the librarian greets him as Terence, she realises it mustn't be him. Terrence, now blind needs a new assistant and fate then steps in as he Irene the job. Irene not only assists him in his everyday life, but also describes the world around him, which made for some truly touching scenes, and it's not long before their mutual attraction burst to life.THE CHARACTERS:Terrence (Isaac), is now a scientist, has commented his adult life to his job. Since the age of 21 Terrence lost his eyesight to a generic disease. He has struggled to adjust to his new life and resents having to have people help him with everyday activities. But he also misses to small thing, like seeing the sunset or the view from his window. He's disability has changed him since high school, and he is a bit darker now. But as he grows closer to Irene, we start to see the happy side of him break through.After such a painful childhood Irene is finally starting to find her feet. While still struggling financially, she has friends and still holds onto her dream of becoming a voice actress. Irene is one of the toughest and most resilient characters I've read in a long time. She has every reason to hate the world, but instead she has such a positive outlook, it was quite inspiring.THE ROMANCEI love stories where high school sweethearts rekindle their love years later, but Chasing Wishing takes it a step further since neither of them actually recognise each other. Watching them fall in love again as the different people that they've become was magical. Their connection was magnetic, and as Irene helps Terrence adjust to his blindness, their relationship deepens. The climax of the story was so perfect and the epilogue finished the book superbly!THE WRITING:Nadia has a such a fluid and almost poetic style of writing. She has such a talent for writing about heavy and tragic stories in a way that evokes so many emotions, and makes understanding the characters state of mind so easy. The visual descriptions where some of the most impressive I have ever read. While reading Terrence's initial POV chapters, I found it very difficult to picture his house or any of the characters around him - but the was the point. I could understand how lost you would feel not seeing the world you live in. And the contrast was incredible when Irene describes the scenery around them - I could see the world burst to life in my mind in vivd details, it was incredible!I also loved how she alternated between chapters from the present with Irene and Terrence , and 9 years ago with Nina and Isaac. The flashback chapters gave a heartbreaking insight into the world that they grew up in.FINAL WORD:Chasing Wishes in a unique and beautiful take on second chances. Nadia's writing was flawless with vibrant imagery and breathtaking romance. A story with depth and substance and characters that you won't want to say goodbye to!CONTENT:Sexuality: medium / sex scenesViolence: mildLanguage: medium / some f wordsDrugs & alcohol: mild-medium / character get drunk in one sceneOther: Racism is a major theme, with many racial slurs and discrimination throughouteARC provided by author for fair & honest reviewMore reviews at [...]