Reviewed by Delene Vrey for Readers' Favorite

Cal Carter moves to Gull Island after his divorce, hoping for a fresh start in his grandparents’ cottage. As a boy, he once spent a summer there, with a quiet crush on a girl with auburn hair and the island in her soul. Annie has never left Gull Island. She married her best friend, but Evan is gone now, leaving her to raise her son alone while running the family shop on the mainland. When a new neighbor arrives, Annie hopes it is someone planning to stay. She and Cal form a hesitant friendship, and soon something unmistakable begins to grow between them. But Cal’s ex brings tension and difficult choices, and matters become even more complicated. Wishes on the Waves by Catherine Michaels is a sweet, clean romance.

Catherine Michaels delivers a gentle summer romance with surprising emotional depth. The novel explores highly relevant themes. The characters face failed marriages, emotional teenagers, and sea turtle conservation. With a smooth style that allows the emotions of each scene to come through naturally, the healing effect of the ocean is highlighted. The motif of the wishing stones is thoughtfully woven into the story and gains meaning through the feelings it evokes. Readers are also given a glimpse into a writer's life, the pressures they face, and how the world around them shapes their work. Grief and loss run quietly through the narrative, whether through death, broken relationships, or the forces of nature itself. As the second book in the Gull Island Romance series, Wishes on the Waves builds on characters introduced earlier, yet the novel works well as a standalone read.