From the taster given as an ARC from publisher and net galley this has the makings of a cracker of a story. Bonnie has just been fired from her job in an antique shop which she had worked in with her father from a child, now owned by the odious son of her fathers business partner, she attempts to find another job and meets Lewis an owner of a new antique shop. Their meeting is obviously going to be fortuitous for the both of them, and I can't wait to read the rest of this book.

The sample opening chapters of The Queen of Wishful Thinking have really whetted my appetite to read the rest of the book. The character of Bonnie is someone I immediately warmed to, being a principled kind of woman. I am intrigued to know more about her home life which doesn't sound as though it is very happy. I am already rooting for her and hoping that she gets some happiness which it seems to me she deserves. Although there hasn't been much about antique shop owner Lew so far, I can tell that he is also going to be a very likeable character. I love the idea that his heart attack has made him take stock of his life and really go for what he wants. It looks as though this is going to be a book filled with Milly Johnson's trademark warmth and humour and doing what she does best, looking at relationships and full of characters you warm to and believe in.

This was one of those books that the minute I started it I knew I was going to absolutely love it, and I wasn't wrong! It immediately had such a warm feeling to it. If you are a Milly Johnson fan, as I am, and follow her on various social media, then you will know that her much loved and very much missed dog Teddy died recently. So if you are a big animal lover, as I am, then the dedication at the beginning of the book will definitely resonate with you and bring a tear to your eye, but it was a really lovely way to remember him.

Anyway, on to the book itself.... The story is about Lewis who owns an antique shop called Pot of Gold Antiques. He has only fairly recently opened it after having a complete change of life after having a heart attack and realising that he needed to do what he wanted to do before it was too late, and he had always wanted to open an antique shop.

Bonnie is the other main character. She initially worked in a rival antique shop that used to belong to her Father and his partner, both of whom have now passed away. Her Father fell ill and sold his share to his partner, who on his death passed his share on to his son. Bonnie was kept on as assistant in the shop because of her connections. She got on really well with her Father's old partner but his son, Ken Grimshaw, is a horrible little man, cheating people and treating Bonnie like dirt. Bonnie got sacked at the start of the book after warning an elderly lady that Ken was ripping her off and he found out.

Bonnie's husband is a very penny-pinching, miserly, loveless man that she always means to leave but the time never seems right. After getting sacked she is in a bit of a panic and doesn't want to go home and tell her husband so she drives around and ends up at Lewis's antique shop and chances asking him for a job. He initially says he has no jobs going as he already has an assistant, but that soon changes and Bonnie's luck starts to change as she starts work for her lovely new boss.

This was only a sampler of the book, unfortunately, but I can't wait to read the rest now!

This is a review for a sample of the first couple of chapters of this book.
This book in written in an engaging way that one would expect from the author Milly Johnson. It quickly absorbs you into the story introducing the two main characters Bonnie and Lewis, and the world of antiques that they are in. It gives you an insight into the weird, interesting and motley world that is antiques and their dealers. This promises to be an interesting read.

The sample chapters did make me curious to go pick up the boom and know what happens ahead.