Matthew Patterson-still stinging after his yearlong dream to make the school football team is crushed-unintentionally gets revenge by snatching three coins from an enchanted wishing fountain, altering his and others' lives forever... The mischievous thirteen-year-old has removed coins that represent three people's fulfilled wishes, and his act unleashes a catastrophic chain reaction. A young star athlete, about to play in her WNBA championship game, loses the amazing basketball skills she'd wished for. An elderly woman whose husband wished for her recovery from a life-threatening condition falls ill again. And in a cruel, ironic twist, Matthew's mortality slaps him square across the face-the third coin is the coin his parents tossed into the fountain when they wished for a child. If the coins are not returned to the fountain within 24 hours, the wishes-including Matthew himself!-will vanish forever. With his best friend, Johnny, Matthew sets out on a life-changing journey, battling demonic forces led by Bolterkein, leader of the mystical creatures known as the Wish Stealers, whose only desire is to stop Matthew and gain power from the lost wishes. Unfortunately, the boy's only allies are the hapless Wish Defenders, who also stand to lose everything if Matthew fails to return the coins in time.
