All About Middle Grade Review: Eden's Wish

Eden's Wish (Eden of the Lamp, 1) by M. Tara Crowl, August 2, 2016 (originally published September 1, 2015). 288 pages. Published by Disney-Hyperion. Source: Author.

All twelve years of Eden's life have been spent in an antique oil lamp. She lives like a princess inside her tiny, luxurious home; but to Eden, the lamp is nothing but a prison. She hates being a genie. All she wants, more than anything, is freedom.

When Eden finds a gateway to Earth within the lamp, she takes her chance and enters the world she loves. And this time, she won't be sent back after three wishes.

Posing as the new kid at a California middle school, Eden revels in all of Earth's pleasures--but quickly learns that this world isn't as perfect as she always thought it was. Eden soon finds herself in the middle of a centuries-old conflict between powerful immortals. A ruthless organization run by a former genie will stop at nothing to acquire the lamp and its power--even hurt Tyler and Sasha, the new mortal friends who have given Eden a home. To save her friends and protect the lamp's magic, Eden must decide once and for all where she belongs.

First Sentence:

On the night when he found the lamp, Darryl Dolan was in a rotten mood. 

While I was hoping that Eden's Wish would be entertaining, it by far passed my expectations as it was not only entertaining but fun as well. The whole legacy of the Lamp and Eden's story was really well done and irresistible!!

• First off, I would like to discuss the Lamp because the was intensely fascinating to me. While I liked the descriptions of the interior, it was the rules of the Lamp that really caught my attention. The rules, or protocol, was really in-depth and thought out. Which made it all the more interesting because, other than randomly transporting from place to place, it was very orderly... I feel that I have rambled about an odd point that caught my attention, but, it made for interesting reading to see how it worked within the realm of the book.

• Moving on from the Lamp...really....I promise... One of the most enjoyable aspects about Eden's Wish, other than the inner working on the Lamp, was the layering of the story. I appreciated seeing how Eden went from struggling to escape her destiny of resident genie to realizing that the creators of the Lamp were just trying to protect her. It was nice to see a character realize that maybe they weren't as oppressed as they first thought. There just are not enough books were characters see, before it's too late, that what they have is good. You know.  

• The writing was thoroughly entertaining and just pulled me in. I literally could not put this one down until I finished it. It was just so well written that I did not want to put it down without seeing whether or not Eden would survive an extended stay on Earth. Plus, the ensuing happenstances during her stay on Earth was quite entertaining. M. Tara Crowl definitely did a wonderful job creating a book that is impossible to walkaway from.  

• I would love nothing more than to talk about the two factions vying over Eden and her fate, but that would spoil SO much!! Just know that this book is well worth picking up as the story in engaging and the writing highly entertaining. Also, I'm sure that y'all will love reading about Eden and her earthly adventure (wait till you see how she appeared when she first, non-wish, landed on earth). 

Final Verdict: Eden's Wish- Runaway genie on earth and those seeking the power of the Lamp, makes for a read balanced with hilarity and adventure! A fun combination!!

Eden's Wish earns

A copy of this book was received from the author in consideration for review. All thoughts are my own.