Okay. I admit that I love dark, scary, unconventional, complex, nerve bending stories! So when I read the blurb I was already volunteered to jump in!

Mystery behind Alice’s kidnapping, her dysfunctional family story, two women’s collaboration to start a search for bringing out the truth are great materials to enjoy a book wholeheartedly.

The eerie and disturbing feeling, slow-burn dark theme usually work well for me but at some point slowness turned into too much stalling and BAM, the story’s building slowly collapsed with the help dislikable characters. Don’t get me wrong, I love broken, flawed, problematic characters which make them more realistic but at this book Alice’s attitudes and her passivity makes me pissed off. I wished she could have held on her life more.

I can sense them the author made some decision to build characters and form story progression with unexpected and different way but unfortunately her writing technique didn’t work for me and made me loss my interest easily.

So for darker themes and intriguing blurb, I could only give three stars. I couldn’t find anything from those characters’ stories resonate with me. I really did try but it didn’t fit with my expectations.

Special thanks to Netgalley and William Morrow Paperbacks to share this intriguing ARC Copy with me in exchange my honest review.

The Lucky One stars two female protagonists. Alice Fine was kidnapped as a toddler and now works for her father’s construction firm and spends her free time identifying missing persons on a website called the Doe Pages. Merrily Cruz was raised by a single mother and now works a boring office job and has a lucrative side gig as a cam girl. They’re both connected to a man named Richard, or Rick, and their stories intertwine as they try to find Rick and figure out who he is/was.

Unfortunately I thought the characters in this book were mostly weak and underdeveloped, from Alice and Merrily to the modest cast of side characters that consists of their friends, family, and coworkers. The protagonists had promise, and there were moments when I felt a tenuous connection to one or both of them, but it wasn’t enough to get me fully invested.

The plot, meanwhile, had a slow start, with not much happening for at least the first half of the book. The story was just engaging enough, and the chapters short enough, for me to keep reading, but as with the characters, I was never fully invested. I read on mostly out of habit; I wasn’t even that interested to find out how it ended. At most, I was mildly intrigued. It was at that point that I decided to stop. This is a mystery, after all. If I didn’t care about solving the mystery, why keep reading?

I would be open to reading more of Day’s books, because I think her writing has promise, but only if she upped the suspense and engagement factors.

2 stars--it was OK.

This book created a sense of unease, which I enjoyed, and I thought the ending was good. However, I also thought the book relied too much on characters not talking (most of this book's tension could have been solved with a good conversation), and I greatly disliked Alice, the book's protagonist. She was very passive, letting life slide over her. I realize that was on purpose and she does grow, but it made for dull reading, in my mind.

I received this review copy from the publisher on NetGalley. Thanks for the opportunity to read and review; I appreciate it!

Lori Rader-Day is one of my favorite authors and she doesn't disappoint with The Lucky One. Well worth the read!

Oh man...what do I say about this book. I liked it. I hated it. It was slow at times and a little confusing for me in parts. Idk, it definitely wasn't what I thought it would be. It did have some twists which kept me reading but it just wasn't for me.

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Lucky One is a story that unfortunately was not for me. The storyline was promising and intriguing at first However, the beginning was slow and some characters annoying, and the plot a bit confusing. If you really like mystery, then this may work for you.

The story centers on Alice, a young woman that works in her father's construction company and has lived a very protected life. Her hobby is working with a website that helps match unidentified bodies with missing persons. She meets a couple of people also involved with the website. They delve deeper into a case, complications ensue, the tension ratchets up, and there are some jaw-dropping twists. Highly recommended.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for allowing me to read an ARC of The Lucky One.

This was a nice slow burn mystery. The story had enough twist to keep me reading and wanting to find out how it ended. I felt it just needed more.

A great mystery...Alice was kidnapped when she was younger and later when she's grown up she sees her kidnapper's face on a website devoted to missing people. Researching her kidnapper brings her close to his daughter Merrily and two other volunteers for the missing people website. What Alice thinks happened to younger self is not all correct though.

This book sounded amazing but sadly it wasn’t for me. The beginning was really slow and I was just hoping it was a slow build but sadly when the book finally took off for me it was like the last 10%.

What a book! The twists, turns, and outcome of everything had my jaw on the floor! I devoured this book in one sitting and sat thinking about it long after I finished. This is an important book, one that should be one everyone's radar! I can't wait to discover more from the author!

Alice and Merrily are discontent, with their jobs and their personal lives.

Alice is going through the motions at her father’s construction company, and only finds purpose in the online group Doe Pages, whose volunteers search for clues in missing persons cases. She remembers little about her own brief kidnapping long ago and wants to help others find closure.

When police arrive at Merrily’s office, they question her about the disappearance of Rick, her mother’s old boyfriend and the closest thing she had to a father figure. She’s determined to find out what happened to him, even though her mother would rather never talk about him again.

A startling recollection of Alice’s intertwines their separate investigations. Despite their mutual distrust, and with the assistance of enthusiastic Doe Pages volunteers Juby and Lillian, they try to fill the many holes in their separate memories of childhood.

Tension intensifies throughout the book, with twists and turns along the way. Everyone seems to be hiding the truth from Alice and Merrily, and nothing is what it seems to be. As with the rest of her books, Rader Day keeps the reader guessing until the end. A thoroughly satisfying read! I am grateful to NetGalley and HarperCollins to an advanced copy of this book.

Lori Rader-Day has written a slow-to-build mystery that offers a few non-traditional characters and that compulsory suspicious undertone. Readers apt to the genre may find the conspicuous foreshadowing and slower plot pace to be anticlimactic. While all of the characters seemed to have something to offer, at some point the development stalled, leaving readers to feel detached. Perhaps this was done on purpose by the author given the dark undertone of the book itself. Whichever the case, the novel still felt a bit rudimentary, however, would be a good starter book for those new to the genre. 3 stars.


Thank you to #NetGalley for this complimentary ARC of #TheLuckyOne. It was read & reviewed voluntarily.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

I wanted to like this book. The premise was great. However, it just didn't all fit together. Alice was kidnapped at a young age, and as a result, her father does everything he can to protect her, even as an adult. She gets sucked into a website called The Doe Pages, where missing people are listed. One day as she scrolls, she sees a face that upends her life: her kidnapper's.

First off, I didn't like the characters. Alice annoyed me the whole book. She didn't like being coddled, she didn't like her job, the list goes on. Yet, even though she feels smothered, she doesn't DO anything to change it. She just comes across as bitter and self righteous the entire book. I felt like she looked down on Merrily, on Jimmy, on everyone. Merrily was okay, and I think probably the strongest character. Juby and Lil were just really odd, especially LIl.

The plot plot also seemed to drag on and on at points. It was pretty obvious to me very early on how things were going to turn out, yet the book dragged on. By the end, I didn't even really care anymore who was telling the truth and who was lying. I was over it.

WOW! This book was an unexpected gem. I thought it sounded good from the synopsis, but wasn't expecting the wild ride it turned out to be.

I will warn readers that it is kind of a slow burn and doesn't really pick up until 30-35%, But if you stick with it, you won't be disappointed!

Lori Rader-Day books can be hit or miss for me but this one is mainly a hit. It seemed very topical and current. I also liked the premise of a woman happening across the person who apparently kidnapped her years ago. I haven't seen that storyline before! A gripping, quick read.

Interesting premise for a novel. I didn’t really like the characters, nor did I find them very sympathetic. I’m not sure I would recommend this title, although I did find it well written.

I really enjoyed THE LUCKY ONE. It delves deeply in the secrets two families have kept for many years and the resulting damage done. It is also a fascinating look at how the internet helps identify anonymous courses. There are places where the book was confusing as it changed narrators, but that was a minor problem. Interesting characters, interesting plot.

Family Secrets

This book went hot and cold on me all the way through the book. It had some good storyline and some confusing story line and those annoying posts from the other members of the club exploring dead and missing persons.

I rather liked the characters that Alice met with those investigating the dead and missing persons site. I didn't know how to figure them at times they did not seem to like Alice that much. They did help her find out information when researching the missing Richard and in finding Merrily. The story made Alice look weak, and gave Merrily some immoral behavior .

It did take me a while to read the book as it started slow and about midway through the book I wanted to finish it to find out how it ended. It was certainly an unexpected and twisted ending.

Thanks to Lori Rader-Day, Harper-Collins Publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review an advance copy of the book

I wanted to love the book. I wanted to even like it. It just seemed forced and too odd in a sense. I could not connect with anyone. Just not a win for me. Thanks, NetGalley for the advance copy to review.