Reviewed by Kat
TITLE: If I Could Wish
AUTHOR: Duckie Mack
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 78 pages
RELEASE DATE: December 18, 2022
BLURB:
Penn enjoys hooking up. He craves the closeness and touch but he compares every guy to the one person he can’t have. His best friend, his confidant, the only one he can rely on. The problem…he’s not real.
Benny has been at Penn’s side since childhood. They are connected so deeply, he can’t leave him. He’s tried, but Penn always calls him back. Knowing how strong Penn’s feelings are makes it even harder. What’s more…it’s not one-sided.
When the two cross a line one night, it sends them in a tailspin as they try to figure out what it means. Can there really be something tangible between them?
If I Could Wish is a stand-alone holiday novella with a twist. It features an imaginary friend-to-lover and a dash of Christmas magic.
REVIEW:
A brand-new author-to-me with a whole new trope I’ve never read!
Penn has loved his best friend since he was a small boy and the only stable thing in his life. The only problem is that Benny isn’t really real. He conjured him up in his mind and has held on tight every since. Moving around for his parent’s business left him lonely and not trusting enough to make new friends. But now no man will ever compare to his Benny. But that is a wish that can’t come true…or can it? Because almost anything is possible with a bit of Christmas magic.
I have come a long way in my acceptance of the paranormal world I believe. Shape shifters, interspecies mating, ghosts, vampires…I have pushed past my doubts. But wishing an imaginary friend, that you have had since you were a small child, to become real so you can be in love with each other forever. Yeah, this might just have pushed a bit past my ability to believe possible.
You want Penn and Benny to be together. Anyone with a heart would want these two together as much as they did. They were the perfect mate. But that is because Penn designed his friend exactly perfect for him. And Benny is. Perfect that is and he wants Penn as much as Penn wants him. But, if Benny is a figment of Penn’s imagination, how does Benny have the ability to feel. I guess that is the part of the story I struggled with. Maybe, if I understand the concept, these beings are put in the universe waiting to be called by their humans to be their imaginary friend. But this went way beyond an imaginary friend a lonely child conjures up. This was a mate wanting Penn as badly as Penn wanted Benny. And that’s where it lost me. I guess I just don’t have a very good imagination.
The part I found funny was the interactions of Penn with his mom. The lack of filter was hilarious. But even more funny was Benny willing to go get the borrowed olive oil. I literally laughed out loud in that scene.
This was a cute book with a unique premise. It’s well written but just not necessarily for me.
RATING: 
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