Don't You Wish by Roxanne St.Claire

When plain and unpopular Annie Nutter gets zapped by one of her dad's whacked-out inventions, she lands in a parallel universe where her life becomes picture-perfect. Now she's Ayla Monroe, daughter of the same mother but a different father—and she's the gorgeous, rich queen bee of her high school.  
In this universe, Ayla lives in glitzy Miami instead of dreary Pittsburgh and has beaucoup bucks, courtesy of her billionaire—if usually absent—father. Her friends hit the clubs, party backstage at concerts, and take risks that are exhilirating . . . and illegal. Here she's got a date to lose her V-card with the hottest guy she's ever seen. But on the inside, Ayla is still Annie.
So when she's offered the chance to leave the dream life and head home to Pittsburgh, will she take it? The choice isn't as simple as you think.

Thoughts: It's simple:  Money does not equal happiness. Or as Biggie Smalls would put it "mo money, mo problems". This story is like Freaky Friday meets Mean Girls. Annie Nutter is such an innocent, sweet character that gets caught in the what ifs of her mother, who is dissatisfied with her life and wonders what could've been if she married Jim Monroe. After her mother storms off in anger at another one of father's inventions, Annie finds herself without a computer that works, since he took some parts for his invention.  In a spark of genius she somehow plugs her phone into it but a freak lightning storm finds Annie in another life and in the "picture perfect" body of Ayla Monroe. Thinking she is in some bizarre dream, she decides to make the most of it yet as the day goes on things start feeling too real. Now, at the top of the food chain, no longer nobody Nutter, she at first embraces her new lifestyle and persona. However, no matter how hard she tries to be this girl, her true nature comes through and she comes to detest Ayla Monroe and the rules of the social hierarchy of Crap Academy. Ayla has the life that Annie always wanted, the body, hot boyfriend and the worship or is it really fear from her peers. Annie must decide if its truly worth it to conform for popularity or rebel for herself. This story is about her struggle with her desire to be popular and her heart. How can she be Ayla without compromising what makes her Annie? 


For me the best part is when she meets Charlie, they have to partner up for an English quiz and that's when he gets a glimpse that Ayla is more than he realizes. Then one night he becomes her savior after she is left to her own devices to get home, after a tryst gone bad with her boyfriend Ryder. It is emotionally, written beautifully and I found myself cheering for Annie to break the mold and go with what she feels for Charlie, regardless of how unpopular that choice may be. Charlie is smart, cute, caring and the right boy for her. He likes who she is on the inside and he may be her only hope to getting back home....that is if she still wants to go back. There so much going on this story as it has much more depth than what it seems at first. It's not just about how the other side lives but who they are in their hearts and how they choose to treat people. It is about not being afraid to be an individual in world of sharks. That said, I recommend this book to anyone that's looking for a reminder that the key to happiness in not what exists in the material world but what exists inside. Love.

Author: Roxanne St.Claire
Title: Don't You Wish
Publication: July 10,2012
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Pages: 368
Audience:Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary
Rating: 4 out 5
Source:Publisher via Netgalley
Website|Blog|Twitter|Goodreads |Facebook
Amazon | BN | Book Depository