My enjoyment of this book was overshadowed by how much I disliked one of the main characters: Jake. I kept getting distracted trying to figure out how he and Lexi were a couple. Her attraction to him just didn't make sense. By the end of the book I decided I really didn't understand Lexi at all. That aside, I know if I am ever going to join a group buy for a lottery ticket, I'm getting something in writing. Forget friendships! No way better to ruin them than money. The best part of this book is that there were issues brewing under the surface that were going to blow, and blow big, even before the money came in to play. The money just made it all more explosive and helped make the twists that much more twisty. And yes, there were some really good twists! I did feel for the kids. They were really the ones who lost out. And, just as I think adults don't pay enough attention to how kids are impacted by situations, the adults in this book didn't either. So don't read this book for parenting advice, unless you need an example of how not to be. Read this book for the sheer chuckle of adults behaving horribly.

Thank you to the publisher, HQ, for providing me with an ARC of Just My Luck in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Gist
What would you do, if you won the lottery jackpot? Go on a wild spending spree? Take lavish, luxurious vacations? Or pull a Scrooge McDuck, build a money bin and swim in it?

How about watch your relationships and life crumble to pieces? Sounds fun, doesn’t it?

Just My Luck takes the reader on that psychological thriller journey.

The Details
Even though I said Just My Luck will take the reader on a psychological thriller journey, it is up to each individual reader to decide, if that journey was worth the time.

I could not find a single likeable character in the entire story, which made it difficult to get invested in it.

I thought the protagonist was insipid, naïve and seemed to have no affection for her family at all. It struck me as odd. She seemed to have no compatibility with her husband and the kids were just there, to feed and appease.

She came across as a push-over with very little sense.

Her husband I absolutely hated with a passion. He was a jerk, selfish, self-centred and very much absorbed with his own life and wants.

Part of Just My Luck was narrated by the protagonist and the other part was narrated by her daughter. I’m not sure why the author chose those two narrators, but I wasn’t convinced by the daughter’s narration.

It felt unauthentic. Parts of it didn’t make any sense and some details were glossed over that could have deserved more time.

In general, I thought Just My Luck dragged too much. At around 20% into the story I still kept asking myself what the point of it all was supposed to be. Where was all of this going?

The snail-speed writing style did very little to keep me interested and even less to encourage me to care.

The Verdict
Overall, Just My Luck is a very quick read. It just turns out that this type of adult contemporary fiction doesn’t do it for me right now. And that’s ok. We all have different moods and different preferences, and it looks like right now I’m looking for something else.

I would suggest it.

Six people. Three couples. The same six lottery numbers for fifteen years to no avail. However, the group had some issues so Lexi and Jake played the numbers on their own - and won - to the tune of nearly 18 million pounds. Two questions come at play? What broke the group apart and do Lexi and Jake owe any of their winnings to their former friends?

Quite naturally, the other four want part of the winnings. It seems only fair. They had a lottery syndicate that they all once took very seriously. Just because they did not join in that past week should not have excluded them part of the pot. How far will Lexi and Jake - and the others - go when it comes to those millions?

What ensues in Just My Luck is a display on how people can change when going from an average life to a possibly elite life - fancier cars, houses, clothes. This fascinating book also shows how nasty some can become and how changeable people can be. However, this book goes even deeper - secrets, lies and betrayal are also at play. I was utterly shocked at some of the twists in this story, twists that went past the associated greed with regard to the lottery winnings, which drew to volatile conclusion in this shocking book.

Many thanks to MIRA and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Imagine winning the lottery! Not just a regular 3- or 4-digit hit but millions! None of the syndicate could imagine their weekly $5 contribution to a lottery ticket would be a winner. Lexi, Jake and friends played the same numbers for 15 years. The frimily (friends that are like family) played and carried on life as usual with dinner parties, summer barbecues and playdates with children.

Who is lying? It is hard to determine which story is the truth once the lottery league starts to investigate claims to the winning ticket. Someone either made a life-changing mistake or is a shark. To Lexi and Jake's recollection, their friends pulled out the week before saying it was a waste of money since they never hit big. But now that their numbers fell in the jackpot, they claim such a conversation never took place.

Well said. The quote above best summarizes Just My Luck. This is a story of luck, trust and the dark side of wealth. It quickly gripped me and never let go until the very last page. I am a sucker for a good twist. Just My Luck had twist after good twist after good ass twist! Adele Parks put on her thinking cap for this one. I highly recommend it for drama readers and lottery players.

Happy Early Pub Day, Adele Parks! Just My Luck will be available Tuesday, April 6.

~LiteraryMarie

Just when you thought winning the lottery would be the answer to all your prayers.......I’m not sure whether I want to rush out and get a ticket for the next draw or perhaps never again buy a ticket.
This fast paced book will get you rilled up in the excitement of winning and sink you into the reality of what winning might be like. Is money the answer to all our prayers or the root of all evil?
Many thanks to Adele Parks, HARLEQUIN – Trade Publishing (U.S. & Canada), and NetGalley for the opportunity to enjoy the thrill!
3.5/5

Just My Luck is a slow-burn domestic drama that gives new meaning to "be careful what you wish for." It is a cautionary tale about greed and the perception of how money can buy happiness when in fact, there is no amount of money that can replace losing a loved one.

Through the lens of morality, this is a union of a psychological drama and a thriller. Told from multiple points of view and shifting time frames, this book has a bit of everything: lawsuits, secret rendezvous, kidnapping, and double-crossing. There's a lot going on and at times the novel is disjointed, but Parks' writing is captivating and in the end, well-crafted.

Just My Luck takes a long hard look at the darkness of greed in this compelling book about morality, friendship, money, and how good luck can actually be the opposite. Although slow to start, readers will be rewarded with the solid writing and surprise ending.

Entertaining, twisty, & engrossing!

JUST MY LUCK by ADELE PARKS was such a fun and easy to read domestic suspense novel about a group of longtime friends that played the lottery together. They were part of a syndicate, until a few of those friends dropped out just a week before one of the couples won the lottery. We see how the dynamic changes within that group and for the couple that wins the lottery.

ADELE PARKS does a wonderful job with the characters here in showing us how winning a big lottery can affect some people in how they behave, choices that they make and the lengths they will go to secure that win. I definitely got a little annoyed with one of the characters in how they uncontrollably spent the money and didn’t take anything else into consideration. Lexie was by far the more sensible and stable character here.

The story is told from a few perspectives but mostly through Lexie and Emily’s point of view. I quite enjoyed how this story unfolded. The premise totally intrigued me and did keep me interested but I thought the story dragged a little bit in some parts. The story started off strong and then, lost a little bit of steam in the middle and totally picked up again near the end. As the final twists were unveiled I was totally fooled, my jaw dropped and I didn’t see the ending coming at all. I did have a sneaky suspicion about one aspect of the reveal though, but it was still a fabulous and very satisfying twist though.

I loved the complexity, all the secrets and how unlikeable and nasty these characters were made for quite the fun and entertaining read. Would recommend it!

Expected Publication Date: April 6, 2021

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Harlequin/Mira Books and Adele Parks for my review copy!

Well hello lucky day! Married couple Lexi and Jake have played the lottery every week for fifteen years. Along with their best friends Jennifer and Fred, and Patrick and Carla. But the week before their lucky day, the friends disagree and pull out of the lottery pool. Imagine their dismay when Lexi buys the winning ticket! They all feel entitled to a share, but Lexi and Jake are adamant that their friends didn't want to be involved anymore and don't deserve one dime of the L17.8 million they won.
If you think lawyers are going to get involved, well it is your lucky day too! Children pulled into the mess, yep. Secrets and lies exposed, yep. Ultimate betrayals, yep. This lucky winning ticket just might end up costing these families everything.
Lexi is the only reasonable voice, wanting to not spend all of the money on stuff and using it to help those who have nothing. But Jake is hell-bent on having all his wishes come true, no matter what. I was and wasn't surprised by how this ended. One twist I guessed correctly, and one didn't even land on my radar.
Lots of twists and turns, and though there is that saying that money is the root of all evil, in this case, I think for many of these characters, it just allowed their true natures to take center stage. I don't play the lottery, but if I did, I hope that if I won, I would have a better outcome.

This book started out great and for the first half, I was fully invested in finding out what happened to these friendships and how this money would impact each of them. Told through a few perspectives, but focusing mainly on Lexi and Jake it was crazy to see how money changed them instantly and how rotten some people can be when money is involved. My main reason for giving this book 4 stars instead of 5 is how unlikeable and despicable every character was.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with this ARC on NetGalley.

Lexi and Jake have been playing the Lottery with their best friends for years! Suddenly the other couples decide it’s stupid since they never win and back out. Bad move. Shortly after, Lexi and Jake hit it big £18 million. This is where things get interesting, the books takes off fast and furious and sends you on a fun ride till it comes to a screeching halt.

The first quarter of the book seemed a little slow and I wasn’t sure I would stick with it, but I’m really glad I did. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Characters with surprising twists; annoying, unlikeable, privileged, cunning, big hearted, ruthless, clueless, conceited. Flew thru the rest of the book. Expected some of the twists but not all. A good escape book.

Thanks to Ms. Parks, Harlequin and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone.

Winning the lottery is probably a dream for most of us, but you may think twice about buying a ticket after reading this cautionary tale.

Lexi and her husband, Jake, have just won the lottery...almost 18 million pounds ($24,895,800 in U.S. currency) after faithfully playing the same numbers every week over the past several years. They, along with their children Emily and Logan, are understandably ecstatic!

Almost immediately, word gets out...and they are faced with their first issue. For years, their friends Jennifer and Fred, and Carla and Patrick, chipped in to the lottery fund. They all had plans to split the winnings between the three couples if they won. Now, Lexi and Jake are adamant that the other couples backed out the week prior. However, the other couples are insisting no such thing happened, and that they are entitled to a cut.

As Lexi prepares to keep her job and help a man who tragically lost his wife and son, the rest of the family couldn’t care less about school or work. To them, life is all of a sudden about new cars, new clothes, vacation spots that cost $80,000, a new house, etc. Greed gets in the way, and may not leave everyone intact in the end.

Just My Luck has a very interesting and captivating premise as it paints some of the dangers lottery winners face (we’ve all heard the stories). Some of the ones included here are overspending and under-thinking, strangers begging for money, friends to enemies, the aforementioned greed, and some dangerous situations I won’t reveal. It’s all very compelling.

The tone is a bit all over the place, as the first 60-70% reads like a semi-light gossip drama with poignant scenes sprinkled in. After that, suspense emerges as things take a sinister turn and secrets come to light. I was pleasantly surprised by this direction, and appreciated the twists. I figured some of them out on my own, and others startled me. Most of the characters aren’t very likable with the possible exception of Lexi, but...

Jake
Takes
The cake

I’m a poet now. Sorry about that...but I digress.

While there are many reasons I didn’t care for him, I cannot get over how ridiculous he was with spending the money. I literally had massive anxiety as I was trying to calculate how much money the family could potentially have left after his impulse spending.

All in all, this is an enjoyable read that kept me hooked and won me over by the end...and I appreciated the last wicked surprise. This is the perfect read for when you want something entertaining, but not too deep. Good for a lazy day with a glass (or bottle) of wine.

3.5 stars.

Thank you to MIRA for inviting me to participate in the blog tour for this book, and providing a widget through NetGalley. The novel will be published on 4/6/21.

Review also posted at: https://bonkersforthebooks.wordpress.com

This book makes you wonder if you would really want to win the big bucks in the lottery. These three couples go in together for 15 years in buying lottery tickets and then they fight. This story shows how rotten some people can be when money is involved. There are lots of twists and turns. This is one of those books where I am not sure that I really like any of the characters in the long term. I received a copy of this book from Harlequin for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

I don't play the lottery - seriously, my luck's just not that good, and I'd rather not throw my money away. That said, I'd like to think that having that much money wouldn't change who I am. I'd also like to think it wouldn't change those in my immediate circle, but we see it all the time. And if you've been around as long as I have, you also know how people can seem one way and turn out another as well as how fluid some relationships can be. Just My Luck is about that - ramped up a notch or two.
Domestic suspense can be a hit or miss for me, but this one is definitely in the former category. It's a little over the top with some of the secrets and all, but that's kind of the fun of this whole story. It's a little like sitting back and peeking through the curtains at some pretty rotten people.
Adele Parks certainly kept me turning the pages in this gripping story, and this is a book that didn't let go with the final page. Instead, I found myself thinking about this one for several days, still pondering the twists and reveals, and that's a rare find these days. There will be no spoilers here, but if you like domestic suspense, this is one to check out.

From the synopsis, I was so excited to read a book about a lottery and three families and how money changes everything! Lexi and Jake are one of the three couples who have been friends for almost a lifetime. They have initiated for years the couples participating in the lottery with each week coming up short until the other two couples quit and then they win!

This book started out great and for the first half, I was fully invested in finding out what happened to these friendships and how this money would impact each of them. Told through a few perspectives, but focusing mainly on Lexi and Jake it was crazy to see how money changed them instantly. It was interesting for the author to throw in their daughter's perspective which grew to a bigger meaning later on - sorry trying not to spoil!

For me the book went downhill fast and devolved into a soap opera. It almost ended up being too much where everything that could go wrong did and I felt as though there was just too many things thrown in.

If you like a book that is a bit over the top and dramatic, then you would enjoy this one more than I did.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin/Mira Books for the opportunity to read the latest novel by Adele Parks - 4 stars for a great escape novel complete with enough suspense to keep you flipping the pages as fast as you can!

A group of couples, friends since they all met at prenatal classes, have jointly played the lottery faithfully for the last 15 years. Until one Saturday evening there's an argument at their weekly gathering. When their numbers come up as winners of 18 million pounds, everything changes. Lexi, who bought the winning ticket, and her husband Jake claim sole ownership because the other couples pulled out of their agreement. Jake has no problem spending the money but Lexi, who works for an agency who tries to help those in need, can't buy into the expensive lifestyle Jake now wants for them and their 2 kids.

You always hear about lottery winners whose lives are ruined after their big win and think that wouldn't be you; you wouldn't change. But money can be a blessing or a curse - and big money changes everything. There are lots of twists and turns in this book and you won't see most of them coming. Read this book before you buy your next lottery ticket!

This is my first novel by Adele Parks. The story kept me engrossed and entertained throughout, and I found it to be very well-written.

There were lots of twists and turns, lies, deceit and mistrust; a truly entertaining story. I would highly recommend this novel.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Books, and Adele Parks for the opportunity to review this ARC. This review and all opinions are my own.

Lexi and Jake Greenwood have just won the lottery. Literally- 17.8 million pounds. A week before, their friends the Pearsons and the Heathcotes dropped out of the lottery syndicate the friends had done for years. The Pearsons and Heathcotes want their share-they never agreed to drop out. The Greenwoods say the winnings are theirs and only theirs. But someone is lying.

This is my second book from this author and I think it will be my last as I am just not a fan of her writing. This moved incredibly slow and had too many tangents and too many story lines going at the same time. I strongly disliked almost every single character with the exception of the Greenwoods daughter Emily, and Toma, who has a really sad story that ties in to Lexi. Basically it’s the age old adage that money can’t buy happiness… but you can definitely count on a lot of drama!

Thank you to MIRA, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Netgalley for my copy. Just My Luck releases on April 6.

This is a book was an interesting insight as to what would happen if you truly won the lottery.

3 couples who seem ordinary and come from different backgrounds have become friends over their weekly ritual of buying a lottery ticket. But soon lies, secrets, and yes even money start to split them. The author created this wonderful story where you in a constant state of trying to determine truth from lies.

If power can corrupt then what of money? we see how money can not only influence but change people in this captivating story I was exhausted by the end after the emotional rollercoaster of a ride.

By the end of the novel, nothing is as you thought and the author leaving you thinking if the next time a friend or colleague asks you to go in on a group raffle ot lottery ticket will you?

Who doesn’t want to win the lottery? We all have plans for what we’d do if we happened to win it big. This is exactly what happens to Lexi and Jake. After 15 years of playing the lottery, they win the big jackpot. Jake is over the moon, spending money and buying some “happiness”. What the family soon finds is that the one thing money can’t buy is happiness. Treachery, lies, deceit, all make this an unpredictable and enjoyable read. I felt the author did a great job of connecting the characters and giving a new twist to the lottery winners story.

Adele Parks' domestic drama Just My Luck begins with an intriguing premise, one that many of us wish for- what would you do if you won the lottery?

Three families have been friends since the birth of their children fifteen years ago. Each month they get together on a Saturday evening for dinner, and they put money into the pot to play the national lottery. Lexi Greenwood, "the woman everyone knows as the fixer, the smiler- some may even slightly snidely call a do-gooder" collects the money and buys the ticket, playing the same numbers each month.

Lexi and her husband Jake are less-well off than the other two couples, and one Saturday evening the other two couples decide that the lottery is "too common" and decide to stop playing. The following week their numbers were drawn, and Lexi and Jake are the big winners of nearly 18 million pounds, a life-changing amount of money.

Lexi is cautious about their win, wanting to take it slow and figure out how best to handle their new situation. Jake and Emily (their 15 year-old daughter), buy expensive new clothes, a fancy sportscar for Jake, luxury vacations, and a huge new home. Lexi fears this money will turn them into people no one likes.

Right away things become complicated. Three people break into their home while Lexi is home demanding money and threatening her. Family, people they don't know, and charities all over the world send them requests for money. The two couples who stopped playing demand their fair share of the money, claiming that Lexi and Jake are cheating them.

Emily's best friends are the children of the two couples, including her boyfriend Ridley. The lottery win shows the cracks in all their friendships, and even in Jake and Lexi's marriage. Lexi is forced to take a leave of absence from her job at the Citizen's Advice Bureau helping people in need when people mob her place of employment.

Just My Luck has some twists and turns you don't see coming, and Parks does a good job keeping the reader engaged and guessing. As you read it, in the back of your mind, you wonder how you would handle the situation. Would the money change you or reveal the person you truly are? Jake and Lexi are both keeping secrets from each other, secrets that create an crackerjack of an ending. Adele Parks does a fantastic job combining domestic drama with suspense, in a page-turner of a story.

Thanks to Harlequin for putting me on the Winter 2021 Mystery & Thriller Tour.