This looked amazing, but it’s been four years so clearly it’s languishing on my TBR. I hope to get to it someday, when the time is right!

This was quite fun! A group of forced prostitutes (or almost prostitutes as some are too young) kill a man and escape on a wild west style adventure to seize their permanent freedom. Robberies, chases, rebellion, a touch of ghosts, and a lot of found girl family dynamics--there was a lot here that made this an intriguing story. The ending lost me a little bit, and I wasn't really a fan of the audiobook narrator, but I enjoyed this a lot and will totally check out the sequel.

Read this back to back with its sequel -- loved the prose, loved the characters, absolutely zipped through it. Not my absolute cup of tea but a damn fun diversion.

One of my all time favorite books! Western meets dystopian charlie’s angels with magic and mystery sprinkled in. Incredible story telling and plot development!

In an alternate history Old West, where angry spirits and beasts roam the wilds and the wealthy control the cities, girls are sold or given to the Welcome Houses. When the girls turn 16 it is their job to "welcome" men aka prostitute themselves to whatever man buys her time for the evening. And this is considered a good life, one where they are fed regularly and get to see a doctor when needed, unlike the harsh and scary life outside the Welcome Houses. Aster will do anything to protect her younger sister Clementine, even putting up with the attention of the men (aka Braggs) in the house for the last year, but when it is Clementine's turn to have her Lucky Night and begin work as a Sundown Girl, Aster knows she will do whatever she can to change their futures.

This was crazy and interesting and sad and scary and dark and inspiring and completely unexpected. I had been meaning to read this forever ago when it first came out but I never got around to it until now, when I ended up blowing through it in a few days because I needed to know what was going to happen next. Keep in mind this is listed as YA and all the characters are 16, 17 and 18, but I would not recommend this for the younger YA due to content. I mean basically, this is about a prostitute house and the girls are trapped there. Not only that, but the story deals with murder, torture and living a life of crime (which I know is bad in practice, but I loved this all female gang and their success!). And while the book was narrated by our fearless leader Aster, the group dynamic was strong and all the side characters were well fleshed out to create a kind of ensemble cast.

The ending made this feel like a standalone story, with most everything wrapped up, but I saw recently that there is going to be a sequel so it will be interesting to see how these incredibly competent and resilient women handle their futures.

Fabulous combination of fantasy and western with a cast of fascinating characters and detailed world-building. Looking forward to the next book in the series!

Unlike anything I’ve read! A little mix of everything (historical, fantasy, with some dystopia thrown in). I love strong female characters in books, and The Good Luck Girls didn’t disappoint! Check this one out if you’re looking for adventure, diverse characters, and a whole lot of strong sisterhood!

It took me a long while but I must now add it to my DNF shelf. The beginning was solid but the world-building and characterization were much too surface level for me and I found myself giving up on the book pretty early on.

Thank you for a chance to review and good luck to the author.

Finally read this book, and I was not disappointed. We are following interesting characters, who know life at its hardest. I wanted to root for them, I was tense throughout the book; I think the author has crafter a very good story and I would gladly read the following books in the series.

I really love Westerns and I feel like there aren't a lot of them in YA fiction, and this book definitely delivered on the Wester tone/atmosphere. I also really enjoyed all of the characters and how they were all unique.

The focus is on the wrong thing.

Davis has created a very interesting world. It's set in an old west type of setting which is synonymous with America but Blacks and Whites live together harmoniously. WOW, let's explore this more.

Instead of discrimination based on race, there's discrimination based people who can cast a shadow vs. those who can't. WOW, let's explore this more. How is it physically possible to not cast a shadow?

Davis' world had an Empire and not a government that indentured the shadowless people and made their TEENAGE daughters prostitute themselves because they couldn't get out of debt. WOW, let's explore this more.

These teen prostitutes are branded with some sort of glowing flower implanted in their cheek which they can't cover. This would mean this world still rides horses and work in mines but they have access to technology. WOW, let's explore this more.

This world has supernatural beings including half human half monster dementor type things and large cat like humanoids crossed with vultures? WOW, let's explore this more.

All of those incredibly interesting aforementioned topics are NOT explored. Instead we get a story about five girls who escape their brothel and are on the run. This is a journey book because they have to travel hundreds of miles to find someone who can cut out their brand and they have no money so have to rob people. I'VE READ THIS STORY BEFORE! These girls have no new voice. Aster is the main voice and she's the preverbal girl trying to protect her younger sister and is desperate enough to kill. Then there's a mean girl turned nice girl and the other three girls barely speak so I don't know who they are. And then we get the old enemies to lovers trope when the only guy enters. OMG, I'VE READ THIS STORY ALREADY! WHAT ABOUT ALL THAT OTHER SHIT THAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR WORLD? FOCUS ON THAT!

You know what would make most westerns better? Ghosts, magic, and smashing the patriarchy. Aster and her sisters are on a journey to find freedom, and they're going to take their revenge on every man that has ever taken advantage on them or the other "Good Luck Girls" sold to Welcome Houses. As thrilling as any old Western with bandits and gunslingers and chases on horseback, but with a much more modern look at gender, sexuality, and class. I couldn't put it down.

Westerns in YA literature have a special place in my heart, because there are so few of them, and this one is a worthy addition. All of the characters are well-developed, and I’m eager to continue learning more about the world they live in. There are some truly tense moments that really had my heart racing, too. Recommended for fans of adventure stories and historical fiction along the lines of Walk the Earth a Stranger.

Oof, this one is overdue. In my defense, such as it is, The Good Luck Girls has been flying off the shelves at my bookstore, so writing a review slipped my mind. The story follows five girls who escape from a brothel hoping to find a life that is not numbed by drugs and controlled by others. Surprising, wonderfully original, and a real punch to the gut.

Hngjkghdfgdfiukgfd I completely underestimated what this novel was going to be. I expected a Memoirs of a Geisha crossed with some form of Western. Instead I got a heavy hitting fantasy that doesn’t hold back. It’s like Westworld had a baby with Thelma and Louise and then accidentally took some Girls of Paper and Fire and threw it in for good measure. Its girl power and critical analysis of the worlds treatment of women; honestly, I can’t even put into words how much I loved this.

TGLG centres around a pair of sisters, Aster and Clementine, who have been sold into servitude at the local Welcome House (this is polite speak for a brothel). On the night of Clem’s first client, her brag takes it too far and she kills him in self-defence; instead of understanding that the client must have crossed unforgivable boundaries, both girls know their mistress will take it out of their hides, as will the deceased’s family. So begins their flight across the Scab accompanied by three other wards of the house, in search of Lady Ghost, a mysterious woman who can rid them of their mark and lead them to a free life.

Ok. Here's the thing, I fully expected to be bored. Its described as The Handmaidens Tale crossed with Westworld. I really didn’t like THMT but Westworld was amazing so I thought I would give it a go. Also, it came from Tor who seems to have an uncanny knack to providing descriptions of novels that sound thoroughly underwhelming but turn out fantastic… From around the 5% mark, I didn’t want to put this down. So much so that 320 pages just took me 2 hours and 45 minutes and I’m sure I missed so many intricacies, but I needed it in my eyeholes post haste (I’ll inevitably go back and find things I skimmed over accidentally).

These women can only be described as bad arse bitches. Even though they have basically spent their lives as sex slaves in order for their family to pay off their debts, I would not want to mess with them. There’s bank robbing, train hitching, stringing up of men by their feet and multiple muggings, just to name a few. Along the way they meet up with a mysterious man named Zee who I fully expected to take on the role of male protector so they could all swoon and act like bimbos. Thankfully I was so ridiculously wrong.

The camaraderie between this group is ridiculous. No matter what life – and the Scab – throw at them, they will never leave a woman behind. Men, yes. Sisters, hell to the no. The personalities of all the leading ladies run the gamut from queen bitch to caring older sister but never do they ever hold anything against each other. Honestly, I need to take my hat off to Davis for her portrayal of sisterly bonds. Usually in a narrative full of women, there’s backstabbing and bitchiness but in Good Luck Girls, there’s just inner strength and cooperation in order to reach their goal.

The world building in this novel is absolutely spectacular. You can taste the dust and feel the grit beneath your finger nails. In periods of travel, you can feel the exhaustion caused by the hot sun and desolate surroundings. There is a point whereby the woman are literally starving, and I swear I could hear their stomachs complaining. Davis’s version of the Wild West is both beautiful and brutal and I am so positively here for it.

There was however one thing that confused me to no end. Each of the wards of the welcome houses are tattooed upon their entry in servitude. This tattoo of sorts identifies them as being owned by the house to which they belong. Should the women endeavour put makeup on or otherwise cover the tattoo, it begins to burn until either the covering burns or they are in such excruciating pain that they remove it. But why? Is there a magic system I missed? Is it heat sensitive? I am so lost…

Here is where I’m cutting it short because I don’t want to spoil this novels amazing plot. All I can say is read the book as soon as possible. Stalk your bookstore. Hunt through your library. Buy it as an e-book. Steal it from the personal stash of THAT friend who we all know will never read it again (look! It me!). Just get this damn book into your eyeballs sooner rather than later.

Charlotte Nicole Davis’ debut novel, The Good Luck Girls, is a thrilling take on the Wild West - all the gun slinging, bank robberies and gripping horse chases, set against the backdrop of a dystopian fantasy world.

At age sixteen, Clementine gets ready for her Lucky Night in a Welcome House in Green Creek; part of a larger area also known as The Scab. From this night forward, she’ll be a Sundown Girl; entertaining ‘brags’ (male customers) and bringing money into the Welcome House, and joining the rest of the Good Luck Girls in which the Welcome House gives home. On her Lucky Night, Clem kills her wealthy brag by accident and knowing the punishment that awaits, escapes with her sister Aster and several other Good Luck Girls, beginning an epic chase and pursuit across the country. In order to find freedom, the girls will have to survive a journey through The Scab, where they can trust no one but themselves.

The Good Luck Girls has a strong connection to American history, sometimes almost feeling like an alternate American universe. I thought a lot about the slave trade and various historical events in US history, and I believe this connection is quite deliberate. The book itself explores slavery and sex trafficking through a lens of the Old West; it was my first time reading a fantasy novel in that type of setting and I have to say, it grew on me by the end.

This book took a while to get moving for my tastes, though I do feel like I enjoyed the read in the end. The run and pursuit type plot line was harder to draw me in as I felt like the antagonists were so far away and detached that it was hard to see the sense of danger and urgency - especially early on. I would’ve liked overall more depth in the character development of all the characters. However, I did grow to like the main character, Aster, and her struggles with trust and trauma, as well as the journey her character was on.

On the whole, I thought The Good Luck Girls was a decent read, not the read I was expecting, but enjoyable nonetheless. I liked the somewhat different take on dystopian fantasy with the setting, but would’ve liked a better execution.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was not a fan of this book. I could not connect with the characters and struggled through the plot. I wish the book had been better paced.

I loved this book so much, I bought it in hardcover after reading the galley so I could share it with others. Vivid imagery combined with incredible storytelling make THE GOOD LUCK GIRLS an exciting and page-turning read.

This was a fascinating read which was a real page turner. We are introduced to Clementine, who is about to go through her first night with a brag, making her a Sundown girl - essentially a prostitute in a brothel.

The Good Luck Girls are all held prisoner by Raveners who have powers of mind control, and an enchanted tattoo which the girls can never cover up.

Clementine's first night doesn't go well and she kills her brag, leading to an adventure of escape, robbery, murder and more importantly friendship and the journey of the girls as they find themselves and what is important to them.

The writing style was fast-paced and the character development was great - I really wanted these abused girls to win.

I met Davis at Bookcon and have wanted to read this book since then!
I wouldn't say I'm a fan of westerns /the wild west setting but the idea of found family and sisterhood and badass women had me sold.

The book was a fast paced adventure story and I loved that it was so timely with currently events. The themes definitely make you sit back and think about what's happening in our irl world.

I'm happy to have read it and can't wait for the sequel. I would recommend!!!