Review: Wish You Were Here by Phillipa Ashley

Synopsis:  Jack Thornfield and Beth Allen have a complicated past.  When they were younger, they met on a student trip to Corsica and fell madly in love.  Things changed when they returned from their trip and Beth never heard from Jack again.  Now, somehow Beth's resume ended up on Jack's desk to fill a new position at the travel company he is the new CEO for, and he's not sure what to do or how to feel about it.  What happens when two people who once loved one another meet up again, unexpectedly after an eight year separation, and can love still linger after all that time?

Review:  On a level of total escape and reading for pleasure, this book totally fit the bill.  The story between Jack and Beth feels tense from the get go, and we get the story from both perspectives as it bounces back and forth between the characters.  We don't necessarily know what happened to separate the two, but you get the sense that there is a serious story behind it all.  In short, the tension is still there and they just need to sit down and talk.

I really loved the escape factor of this novel.  It was short, it was engaging, it was romantic, it was emotion-driven, and it was set in the UK.  All of these led to a great read, in my opinion.  Having read Phillipa Ashley's Dating Mr. December and loving it, I was not disappointed with the newest republication.  Ashley has a nice precision to her writing, without sounding too technical or superfluous in her descriptions; she simply tells a great story.  There is some sensuality in the novel, but I didn't think it was overdone nor was it through the entire novel.  On the whole, this was a great escape read and one that easily sucks you in from the first chapter.  I will definitely be reading more of Ashley's work, since they've both been great reading for pleasure!

FTC Disclosure:  Review was based on an Advanced Review Copy from the publisher.