The Wishing Well

by Anna Jacobs

When her unfaithful husband, Craig , dies in a car accident, shortly after moving out of the family home, Laura Wells decides to leave Australia and go back to her native Lancashire to help nurse her ailing mother. After all, Laura s two children, Ryan and Deb , are grown up now, and Deb has made it plain that she holder her mother responsible for her father s desertion and death. Laura has an uphill struggle to face as she starts to rebuild her life. Desperate to find a job and a place to live, a simple wish at a wishing well leads her to Kit Mallinder a man in heed of a live-in housekeeper. Kit is a former journalist, who is convalescing after a car accident and he s still finding it hard to come to terms with a slight disability that prevents him from running or leading an active life. Both facing hardship, Laura and Kit find solace and strength in one another s company... and if they can find the courage to trust one another they might just find the kind of happiness they dream of. A contemporary romance perfect for fans of Maeve Binchy

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Chick Lit, Adult

368 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2005

About the author

Anna Jacobs has 87 novels published as of April 2019. She writes historical sagas and modern novels alternately, and in the past has written historical romances and fantasy novels (the latter as Shannah Jay).

She's addicted to story-telling and writes three novels a year. You can find a list of books and series on her website at www.annajacobs.com

Anna reads 3 novels a week. Happy reading, everyone.

Reviews

[Chelsea Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5 Stars: ‘The Wishing Well’ by Anna Jacobs.
→ Age Range: Adult.
→ Genre: Romance, Contemporary Fiction.
→ Book Type: Novel.

Favourite Quote: ‘He was always so - alive.’

In-depth Rating:
→ Plot: ★
→ Character Development: ★
→ Setting: ★
→ Entertainment Level: ★
→ Writing: ★
→ Art (If Applicable): N/A.

General Comments: Where was the plot? For a family drama and all their complications amidst the tales of Lancashire, the writing is dull. The repetitiveness of using death, to continuously progress the plot, was utterly disconcerting and lacked sympathy. Discussions of: body image, ableism, and other forms of discrimination, seems to be a staple piece in Anna Jacob’s novels without fail - it is getting boring. Every character lacked depth, their personalities were one-dimensional, they simply oozed privilege, whiteness, and third-world problems. Yikes, yikes, and yikes.

Time Read: Forty-Four Days.
→ Audiobook: No.
→ Audiobook Narrator: -

Trigger Warnings:
→ Death (Miscarriage and Family).
→ Internalised Homophobia.
→ Discrimination (Ableism and Body-Shaming).
→ Assault.
→ Mental Health (False Representation of OCD and Anorexia).

Buddy Read: Jenny and Kirsten (Book #8 of 2023).

[Diane Challenor · Rating 3 out of 5]

When you read mainly crime mysteries like I do, reading a romance is like stepping over a boundary. The Wishing Well was recommended to me by a friend, so I was keen to give it a go. I wasn't disappointed, it was an easy read with likeable characters set in recognisable places. After being immersed in a lengthy crime series, the Womens Murder Club (I'm up to book six), it was strange not solving a murder plot. In many ways, The Wishing Well's simplicity was refreshing.

[mois reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laura and kit

Wow what a wonderful story a lot of sadness and happiness and lots of love just what a story needs 5 STARS .

[Kathy E · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another great read from Anna Jacobs they always hold your interest right until the end of the book. I would recommend this book.

[Carol Hayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

really enjoyed this book. so many different stories going on which all came together at the end

[Roz Radmore · Rating 5 out of 5]

In her mid forties Laura is happy with her life in Australia . Suddenly her world collapses about her . Her husband leaves her and one week later is killed in a car crash. Bit by bit the news just keeps getting worse . Her comfortable life style is over .
She decides to leave her grown up children and go home to Lancashire , where her elderly parents are struggling .She is desperate to find a job and somewhere to live . Making a visit to a local wishing well leads her to meeting Kit . He is a former journalist used to travelling all over the world until an accident left him with a disability . He needs a live in housekeeper .
Is fate playing a hand here ? While struggling to overcome grief and hardship will this unite the pair ?
A lovely story about family and working together through loss and loneliness.

[Lynn Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of Laura Wells who decides to leave Australia and go back to her native Lancashire to help nurse her ailing mother after her unfaithful husband, Craig, dies in a car accident, shortly after moving out of the family home. After all, Laura’s two children, Ryan and Deb, are grown up now, and Deb has made it plain that she holds her her mother responsible for her father’s desertion and death. How she reconnects with her family in England, develops a better relationship with her daughter and comes to terms with her son taking up with her estranged husband's young mistress and finds new love for herself with injured journalist Kit Mallinder is well told. An enjoyable read for me.

[MRS S PUSEY · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant as always.

I read this book in 2days i couldn't put it down i really enjoyed it Laura was lovely and quite stable considering what she was going through i really felt for her especially when her daughter was such a spoilt brat turned out blaming her for everything i felt like slapping her ,her son was a bit better .Her coming to help her dad with her mother was so sad i cryed just reading this part,Kit was a lovely man and I'm glad Laura found him she deserved to be happy after everything and with baby as well how good is that.

[David Lindley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although a bit unlikely (knowing the complex families of which I was a part), a jolly romcom read.

As the novel indicates, every individual has some relationship issues to overcome, and this novel concerns a number of the common ones (infidelity, favouritism, pregnancy, anorexia, religious cults….) and how they impact the lives of the individuals.

The wishing well seems to be the conduit to make everything work out in the end, and, whilst quite plausible for the novel, for too many of us real life just isn’t like that.

Good fun

[Thuan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was an enjoyable read, but at the same time, the story felt manipulating. It's one of those books where, not only the main characters get their romance/happily ever after, but also every characters they interact with. Besides the main characters, Laura and Kit, the son, the daughter, the mistress just happens to have their own romance start and end happily along with the main characters. Personally, it's a little too...unrealistic. If you don't mind this, it's a good read.

[Angela burnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good read from Anna jacobs.i couldn't put it down from start to finish .she really gets the reader gripped to the story I found the story line about the mother who had dementia very moving and told in a way that it very moving but I'm sure a lot of people can relate to the situation the family were in.well done Anna it brought tears to my eyes at the end of the story I do like a happy ending!

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fifth book by Anna Jacobs I’ve read. I enjoy her writing style, her cozy village settings and, for the most part, her characters. I find myself unable to give more than three stars though because every book I’ve read has a female character, or two or three, who has been raped, stalked or sexually assaulted. The author obviously has a formula and this must be part of the formula but you could easily drop this aspect of the plot and still have a great story.

[Frances Vivienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely Beautiful

Anna Jacobs ,brings the characters to life in this beautiful story that follows the life of Laura, and her family. It is beauty in the writing and story is pure joy to read. There
are many ups and downs as in real life, where lessons are learnt in the most simple ways, that we all should take note of.
The characters are placed nicely, as you join them in " The Wishing Well."
A Highly recommended read. Frances.

[Janani · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Anna Jacobs but this book felt like it was long and boring. I just wanted to get it over with. The characters didn't interest or feel close to me. This is one book of hers that I won't reread.

[Hollie · Rating 4 out of 5]

i thoroughly enjoyed however it was very unrealistic almost every character had a romance which made it a bit to much however i loved the twist the the parents: grandparents did make me tear up a bit which i don’t normally do at books would recommend

[Tracey Reed · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book and it kept me interested but I don't think it was the best written book I've ever read. I found a couple of mistakes and felt that some of the character's dialog was rushed a little bit. However it was a comfortable read, and I would try another Anna Jacobs book.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great read although early on in the book you could predict what was going to happen- however, I found I couldn’t put this book down- it was full of romance, family love and life’s challenges which touched my heart x

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

The writing style and characters are overly simplistic and predictable - very much "tell" instead of "show". No tension, no nuance, no twist. A quick read as a result though! P.S. People fall in love fast in this one.

[josephine Hunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

a lovely, upbeat, interesting story.

It is so nice to read an Anna Jacobs book, I have just read several different stories by other authors, but non of them hold your interest from the first couple of pages until the end.

[Mrs Linda Sadler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful story

I have thoroughly loved reading about all the characters, I do like the way Anna tells each character’s story one by one and then the common link between them thank you Anna

[Veronica · Rating 4 out of 5]

The wishing well is a fairly short story but covers a lot of charachters. The death of the main charachters husband changes not only her life but that of her two adult children. Very enjoyable.

[Gillian McGillveray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anna Jacobs' books

Once again a book I could not put this book down. Captivating and easy writing style. This was most enjoyable.

[Jo Clarke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started well but fizzled out towards the end.

[Vicky · Rating 1 out of 5]

really dull, poorly written - didn't finish it as it was not very good.

[Monika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely good read.

[Linda Hobson · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always a good read

[Tayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

5 February 23

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another great book from Anna Jacobs
Great characters some sad times some hard times but also some absolute fabulous times
And a Happy Ending for Laura and Kit

[Amy McNutt-Bourque · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent story!!

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good storyline and easy to read. Only read because I ran out of books I "wanted" to read but glad I did