For Rose Gardner, working at the DMV on a Friday afternoon is bad even before she sees a vision of herself dead. She's had plenty of visions, usual...
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Sep 14, 2011
Erica
rated it: 
I love a great mystery!! And Twenty-Eight and a Half Wishes was just that.
Rose was instantly likable. She was quirky, nieve and sheltered - with a crazy mom.
So. What does one do with a character like that? Have her think she's going to die. Brilliant!
Instantly I was pulled into the world. All the characters were unique and had their own quirks. Rose's character grew through the story and was believable. She reminded me a little of Janet Evanovich's characte More...
Rose was instantly likable. She was quirky, nieve and sheltered - with a crazy mom.
So. What does one do with a character like that? Have her think she's going to die. Brilliant!
Instantly I was pulled into the world. All the characters were unique and had their own quirks. Rose's character grew through the story and was believable. She reminded me a little of Janet Evanovich's characte More...
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Aug 02, 2011
Eisley
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I was one of the few folks who had the opportunity to review this book as an ARC. Not being familiar with Sookie Sackhouse or any of the southern mystery genre I knew it might be a stretch for me to get into this novel and character. However, Denise Grover Swank hooked me right into the story from the first sentence! I think the first time I read it I read the whole thing in one sitting.
The quirky southern heroin has just the right mixture of everything! Seriously, she is funny, heart More...
The quirky southern heroin has just the right mixture of everything! Seriously, she is funny, heart More...
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Dec 28, 2011
Kathy
rated it: 
I was hooked from the first page and had to keep reading to see what would happen next. Our main character Rose was very likable. She’s had a hard life and it was fun to watch her take charge and start living it. The mystery was well written, you’re never quite sure what is going on. You learn things as Rose learns them. I’m kind of glad that I didn’t know what was going on, or who to trust. It kept things interesting. The setting was charming and you get the feel of being in the south. I also l
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Dec 03, 2011
Avery
rated it:
Rose is by far one of the most interesting characters I have read of in quite some time. I love that she didn't let herself be dragged down by her history, as many characters would had they been in her position, she always had such a positive outlook on life. Also, she is the sort of character you cannot help but root for and want to befriend in the hopes that some of her positivity will rub off on you. Furthermore, I very much appreciated that Denise was able to give us Rose's history in little
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Nov 28, 2011
Chelle
rated it:
It's true. I could NOT put this book down. I was hooked from the moment that I opened the book. Rose is hysterical, witty and a woman that I wouldn't mind being.
It starts with Rose working at her every day job working @ the DMV when a man approaches her counter. She has a vision of herself dead on her sofa (well, her mama's sofa due to her living with her mama) and this man that walked up to her counter holds the key to her vision.
Her mama is not an easy woman to live with an More...
It starts with Rose working at her every day job working @ the DMV when a man approaches her counter. She has a vision of herself dead on her sofa (well, her mama's sofa due to her living with her mama) and this man that walked up to her counter holds the key to her vision.
Her mama is not an easy woman to live with an More...
Sep 13, 2011
Kathie
rated it: 
It was a fun read and it held my attention. I was looking for an easy read between a couple of heavy books and this fit the bill. It always helps when lighter reads are well-written and have interesting characters. I only wish I could have found the plot more believable.
The problem I had was that everything fit together too well. I had trouble accepting that Rose could change from a passive and easily controlled mouse of a girl to such an intuitive and independent risk taker so q More...
The problem I had was that everything fit together too well. I had trouble accepting that Rose could change from a passive and easily controlled mouse of a girl to such an intuitive and independent risk taker so q More...
Aug 24, 2011
Deven
rated it:
I read this book a few weeks ago and wanted to do a review, only I wasn't sure how. I have wrote and re wrote this review. I still don't think what I have to say gives this book justice but, I want people, readers to know how much I loved in this book. I was warned that I would get anything done. So knowing the reader I am-I get totally lost in my books especially great ones-I cleaned, had laundry caught up, as much as one can, and dinner made early. I even gave the kids their baths and put them
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Aug 21, 2011
Samantha
rated it:
Denise Grover Swank is on tour with CLP Blog Tours, and I am sure glad she is! I could not put down Twenty-Eight and a Half Wishes. I started it at eight in the morning, and by eight that night I was already 67% finished- and I worked a full day! I kept pulling my Kindle out whenever I got a free minute because I couldn’t stand not knowing what would happen next. The main character is Rose Gardner, a twenty-four year old woman who seems more like she is a young teen from her sheltered life she h
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Aug 09, 2011
S.M.
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For Rose Gardner, working at the DMV on a Friday afternoon is bad even before she sees a vision of herself dead. She’s had plenty of visions, usually boring ones like someone’s toilet’s overflowed, but she’s never seen one of herself before. When her overbearing momma winds up murdered on her sofa instead, two things are certain: There isn't enough hydrogen peroxide in the state of Arkansas to get that stain out, and Rose is the prime suspect.
Rose realizes she’s wasted twenty-four ye More...
Rose realizes she’s wasted twenty-four ye More...
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Aug 06, 2011
Angel
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”It all started when I saw myself dead” This one sentence starts you on a ride you don’t want to get off. You never know up to the end, the ending and it surprises you.It leaves you breathlessly waiting for the next in the “Rose Garden Mystery Series”
You cannot help but like Rose, she is funny quirky but at the same time a strong women in her own right. She has the gift of “visions” which had up until this point been minor, but from this point on will change her life. She a Normal every More...
You cannot help but like Rose, she is funny quirky but at the same time a strong women in her own right. She has the gift of “visions” which had up until this point been minor, but from this point on will change her life. She a Normal every More...
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Jul 20, 2011
Rea
rated it:
I have just finished Twenty Eight and A Half Wishes by Denise Grover Swank. This is not the usual kind of book I would pick up but when the book was offered to me to review there was something that intrigued me about the storyline mainly to do with our main character Rose who has visions which has always been of interest to me. The book gets off to a great start and a fast pace with the first line of the book “It all started when I saw myself dead” .I think this line is going to stick in my mind
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Sep 05, 2011
Laura
rated it:
Wow what a completly swoon-worthy book!! I haven't read a book that made me swoon as much as this book since Anna and and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. Both books kept me up til the wee hours of the morning, simply because I was so enthralled in the story that I couldn't put it down. The main character Rose Gardner is a completly sheltered 24 year old girl, so when her over-bearing mother is mysteriously murdered, she decides that it's time she lives her life, but not until she see's a v
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Feb 08, 2012
Englishrose
rated it:
This book was simply fantastic! The story drags you in from the first line and never lets you go. My adrenaline got going with this one and didn't stop until the very end. The excitement and plot twists are well made so that they are fun and exhilarating. Rose is a fabulous character - a mixture of the innocence of a young girl with the maturity of an adult. She is sweet, naive and determined to break free from her past. Joe is an enigma and you go back and forth with Rose and if you shoul
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Dec 10, 2011
Megan
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This book is such a delightful story and it is truly full of Southern charm and humor! I loved reading of Rose's transformation from a timid and beat-down girl into a beautiful and confident young woman, no longer afraid to stand up for herself and no longer willing to stand on the sidelines and watch her life pass her by. She is a character that you cannot help but root for. Also, you cannot help but root for her and Joe's developing relationship- while she may not have been your typical damsel
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Dec 18, 2011
Josephine
rated it:
Rose Gardner is a 24-year-old girl who works at a DMV, and still lives at home with her Mama. Despite her age, Rose has lived a very sheltered life, until she sees a vision of herself dead; this vision, and other events, leads Rose to come up with twenty-eight wishes on the back of receipt that she wants to fulfill before she dies. This story, in my opinion, was very suspenseful; I never knew where Swank was going or what she was going to reveal next, but it just made me love this book even mo
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Sep 01, 2011
Nerissa
rated it:
Rose Gardner has visions of things that would be considered useless, she can’t control them they just happen in the presence of the person who will be affected. But, this time she sees a vision of herself murdered on her mother’s sofa.
Rose decides that she needs to take life into her own hands, she finally stands up to her mother who is ruthless and controls everything about Rose’s life. Rose decides to make a wish list or bucket list of sorts with things that she would love to acco More...
Rose decides that she needs to take life into her own hands, she finally stands up to her mother who is ruthless and controls everything about Rose’s life. Rose decides to make a wish list or bucket list of sorts with things that she would love to acco More...
Dec 08, 2011
Heather
rated it:
it was another winner from this author, she hasn't failed me again! Loved the story of sweet turned fiesty Rose. She had such heart throughout this book it felt as though I was living each of her moments on her WalMart wish list with her. The chemistry of these main characters was fantastic as well. I loved every moment they were together or apart.
This book also such wonderful comedic aspects to it as well that i was laughing outloud throughout the whole thing, and to me that can More...
This book also such wonderful comedic aspects to it as well that i was laughing outloud throughout the whole thing, and to me that can More...
Oct 27, 2011
Meredith
rated it:
I had trouble putting this book down, it was that good. It's not the type of book I am used to reading as it is more mystery than chick-lit, but it had enough humour, angst and relationship drama to keep me invested in not only the mystery but the characters. Rose was a great character - after spending 24 years a slave to her abusive mother, she had an amazing passion to make up for lost time, hence the 28 and a half wishes. Her relationship with her older sister Violet had me choked up sever
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Aug 28, 2011
Abby
rated it:
I did enjoy this story, I marked it a three because for me a lot of it was pretty predictable. I had Joe figured out before I'd hit the mid-way point of the book and was disappointed that Rose never questioned what he could really possibly be when she thought everything else. I also wasn't shocked when Rose's history was revealed, and felt like that plot point was dropped pretty quickly after the bomb had dropped. I felt that part could have been explored a little more. Because of how quickly it
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Nov 16, 2011
Michelle
rated it:
As a compulsive list maker, I was immediately intrigued by the premise of Denise Grover Swank's new book. Okay, granted I don't have psychic visions or have to worry about someone out to murder me (I don't think anyway), but list making, I have down! Rose Gardner is your typical heroine. She has grown up facing hardship in the form of a mother that treats her more like an inconvenient housekeeper more than treating her like a daughter, feeling that she has to give her freedom to making sure her
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Jul 06, 2011
Anne
rated it:
It takes a lot for me to read a book in one sitting but this book grabs you by the collar and doesn't let you go from start to finish. There is just the right mix of suspense and mystery with the comic relief of Rose's personality added in. I clicked with Rose right away, and loved every thing about her. I received quite a few weird looks as I started laughing out loud at some of her crazy antics. The romance aspect was just enough to add quite a sexy thrill without being overpowering. I ab
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Dec 07, 2011
Rhonda
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Twenty Eight and a Half Wishes by Denise Grover Swank
“It all started when I saw myself dead.”
For Rose Gardner, working at the DMV on a Friday afternoon is bad even before she sees a vision of herself dead. She’s had plenty of visions, usually boring ones like someone’s toilet’s overflowed, but she’s never seen one of herself before. When her overbearing momma winds up murdered on her sofa instead, two things are certain: There isn’t enough hydrogen peroxide in the state o More...
“It all started when I saw myself dead.”
For Rose Gardner, working at the DMV on a Friday afternoon is bad even before she sees a vision of herself dead. She’s had plenty of visions, usually boring ones like someone’s toilet’s overflowed, but she’s never seen one of herself before. When her overbearing momma winds up murdered on her sofa instead, two things are certain: There isn’t enough hydrogen peroxide in the state o More...
Oct 11, 2011
Jenn (Booksessed)
rated it:
Let’s start with the silly part that I’ve obsessing over. Until I read this book, I didn’t consider or know that anyone else considered Arkansas as part of the South. I thought it was part of the Midwest. Not that there’s anything wrong with either place, it was mostly a “well, huh” moment. I do love that it reads like a typical Southern novel, complete with mentions of sweet tea and boys who open doors. Swoon.
I loved this novel. I started it one evening but only made it about 30 pag More...
I loved this novel. I started it one evening but only made it about 30 pag More...
Jan 15, 2012
LK
rated it:
I think I’ve said this before, but I love mysteries. I cut my reading teeth on the cozies of Agatha Christie — I have read every single one more times than I or anyone else can count — and it didn’t stop there. After mastering the entire Christie collection, I moved on to the works of P. D. James and her Adam Dalgliesh series, got hooked by Elizabeth Peters and the capers of Amelia Peabody, Vicky Bliss, and Jacqueline Kirby, love the animal antics of Rita Mae Brown’s books written with Sneaky Pi
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Jun 14, 2011
Lori
rated it:
Spectacular book! I haven't been entertained with a good read like this for a long time. The story is very well developed and as a video producer, I look for character development and the ability to make me forget where I am during a good read.
I can see the movie playing out in my mind! This is seriously a good book with amazing suspend, romance, comedy...the whole package. I can't wait for the next book in the series to come out.
This author has it going on! Keep writing
I can see the movie playing out in my mind! This is seriously a good book with amazing suspend, romance, comedy...the whole package. I can't wait for the next book in the series to come out.
This author has it going on! Keep writing
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Oct 25, 2011
Alysia
rated it:
I really enjoyed this book. It's not your typical mystery, and it moves pretty slowly through the first half. That said, I didn't mind that it was moving slowly at all because the writing is so detailed. The author did a great job with the mystery part; I didn't even once have any idea how it was going to play out. It was really a mystery, and the resolution was totally satisfying.
I also liked the main character's voice, and look forward to reading the next book in the series!
I also liked the main character's voice, and look forward to reading the next book in the series!
Oct 01, 2011
Jan
rated it:
Rose has grown up in a home with an abusive mother and at age 24 she finally decides she's had enough and gets in to a bad argument with her mother. From there her life changes drastically and she's a suspect of murder when she finds her mother dead later that same day after having a vision (premonition)of her own death at the very same spot. The story goes from there with lots of twists and turns that include her older sister Violet and the new neighbor next door named Joe. At one point the sto
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Oct 09, 2011
Dana
rated it:
Someone who knows the author recommended this book, and I'm glad I decided to check it out. It was a little bit like a Janet Evanovich book - wacky & inexperienced heroine who gets into ridiculous jams. I did have some problems with the editing - especially at one point where a detective is called "stalky" when I'm sure the author meant "stocky." But the story was fun & engaging. A nice light read.
Aug 23, 2011
What a delightful book! Romance, mystery, a heroine you can't help but love, and one very special dog (hee hee), all wrapped up in a charming Southern voice that grabs you from page one. Complete with surprising plot twists, a colorful cast of characters, and genuinely touching moments, TWENTY-EIGHT AND A HALF WISHES is one of those books you can't stop reading, once you start!
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Jun 13, 2011
Trisha
rated it:
This book has an engaging, hilarious voice attached to a main character you'll root for, laugh with (but never at) all while wishing she'd be your best friend. The romance is delicious and sexy while remaining fairly chaste - just like Rose herself - and the mystery unfolds in a way that keeps the reader interested but never, ever drops the Southern charm that makes this novel special.
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