This was an enjoyable read and I would recommend it. thanks for letting me have an advance copy. I'm new to this author.

THE LUCKY ONES is a very good novel. The story is split between Columbia and New York. In the former, the drug war's impact is keenly felt. The book follows the lives and experiences of a group of high school students and others who come in and out of their orbits. It's a novel-0f-short-stories, with different narratives intersecting and melding into a satisfying, well-executed whole.

A really interesting introduction to this author's work. I look forward to reading more by them. Recommended.

This novel started out strongly but the story is told in such a fragmented way that it was hard to maintain interest in the ever evolving cast of interconnected characters. Each segment was well written but they were like pieces of a puzzle that didn't satisfyingly fit together. A little bit too clever by half.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the e-review edition of this novel.

Fueled by drug cartels, the military, and warring gangs, Colombia's twenty-year war had a profound effect on so many people. Chilling and well written, Ms. Pachico writes sensitively, presenting the consequences of this struggle in a very human way, through the characters she offers. Highly recommended.

Columbia between 1993 and 2013, the drug cartels are terrorising the country and no-one rich or poor are left untouched.
Julianne Pachico's interlinked stories are unflinching in their portrayal of the impact the drug wars had on the various characters. There is the teacher held captive for 5 years in the jungle teaching literature to twigs and rocks, an attempt at some kind of normality, of passing the time. In a later story we learn that he escaped but with physical and mental scars, living his life as best as he can.
I loved the bizarre story of rabbits high on coca leaves because there was nothing else to eat!
The collection is exquisitely written and extremely self-assured. The characters are diverse but very real and cannot fail to impact on the reader.
Pachico is extremely talented and I cannot wait to read whatever she may write next..