Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes (Pandava Quartet #3) by Roshani Chokshi

 
Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi
My Rating: ★★★★★

Aru and her soul-sisters are on a mission to rescue the clairvoyant trapped on a Ferris wheel before the Sleeper can hear their prophecy. The good news is that they have clairvoyant and her twin sister. The bad news is that they failed the second part of the mission spectacularly. Not only did the Sleeper hear the prophecy, but so did several innocent bystanders. With the rumor mill cranking at record speed, Aru and her soul-sisters are banned from missions and sent off to a crisis manager to give them a full PR makeover. Unfortunately for everyone, they have other plans, as Aru is convinced that the prophecy is sending them to find the Kalpavriksha before the Sleeper can get to it.

I’m so excited to have just finished another book from this wonderful series. Aru and her soul-sisters are extremely relatable characters that I love dearly. Mini remains my favorite character, but I love several of the characters that we see regularly plus the ones we meet in passing. Plus, each book always has a good balance between serious and hilarious on top of being fast-paced and full of moral lessons.

This time around, the story really pulls on the heartstrings as we watch Aru really struggle with sadness and anger about the life she could’ve had if her dad never became the Sleeper. Then we have the newest Pandava sisters, Sheela and Nikita, who struggle with loneliness, the loss of their parents, and feeling constantly let down by the people around them. I really feel for them all and I think that readers who relate to them, without the fantasy aspects of course, are really going to feel seen while reading this installment of the series.

I absolutely love how every new character is brought to life. It always makes me wish I could somehow be transported into the book. I do think that Aru and company always read as a few years older than they’re supposed to be, but it’s the only complaint I ever have while reading these books. I will say that Sheela and Nikita actually do read as the ages they’re supposed to be. Plus, Aru’s ultimate reaction to the final revelation regarding her father reads as a 14-year-old’s perspective, so that’s a step in the right direction.

I’m so glad that I finally got to read this so close to the release of the next book because the ending has me reeling. I’m not sure how I’d be able to hold on if I read this last year because that ending has left me with many thoughts and questions. If you have not checked out this series, I highly encourage you to do so. It’s absolutely wonderful!