The Lucky One by Jessica Payne is a fast paced thriller with a serial killer twist! Ten years ago, on her way home from prom, Norah Silverton survived a serial killer known as Hansel. Her friend August was not so lucky. Now Norah, a well known MMA fighter and coach, is back in her hometown of Kansas City to plan her father’s funeral arrangements. She arrives and another friend is murdered similarly to the way Hansel killed his victims in the past. Under suspicion and fearing she is being watched, Norah must try to figure out if Hansel is back to finish what he started or if a copycat is responsible. As her friends start to disappear, Norah knows the moment she has trained for the past ten years, the chance to come face to face and fight Hansel, might be the only way to save herself and her friends.
The twist and turns start and never let up with this one. Although I was a little disappointed in the reveal of Hansel, I still really enjoyed this book. I love all things serial killer, podcasts, and true crime books so that really caught my attention, and I thought the MMA fighter aspect was unique.
Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Jessica Payne for providing me with a digital review copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of The Lucky One by Jessica Payne
This was a great novel and the suspense grew as I read to the point I could not put the novel down half way through.
Main character is Norah, she is a fight coach who helps to train other fighters for the MMA, She works with Rob who owns the gym. Norah has had to rush back home to Kansas City, her father has died, he was an alcoholic and she hasn't seen him in years, ever since she was abducted and escaped. Now she has to deal with her father's death and face the memories of what happened on prom night. This novel will grab you from the beginning with well developed characters and an unexpected twist at the end...
I will be looking for more novels by Jessica Payne

For a seasoned thriller lover, I found this one to be pretty underwhelming. Even though it started out slow, the pace did end up picking up half way through. I personally thought the killer was predictable as well. 🙈

Norah escaped a serial killer on prom night 10 years ago. Her best friend did not. They say the likelihood of being attacked by a serial killer is .00039 percent. Being attacked by a serial killer more than one time even less than that. Is Norah the lucky one that got away or really unlucky?

Norah is a strong female character. She has worked hard to overcome her past experience with the serial killer Hansel. She has trained as an MMA fighter so that she can fight back if she ever encounters him again. When her father dies unexpectedly, Norah is suddenly thrust back into her hometown, a world she has desperately tried to forget about for the last 10 years. It’s not long before people Norah was once close to start getting hurt. Is the serial killer she once escaped back, or is it a copycat? Norah is determined to find out.

Jessica Payne does not disappoint with her second psychological thriller. You will be on the edge of your seat and up reading past your bedtime to find out who Hansel is. The twists and turns are shocking and leave you trusting no one in Norah’s life. The end is satisfying. I can’t wait to read Jessica Payne’s next book!

This is a fast-paced, action-packed, suspenseful thriller that kept me up way later than I should have been but I simply had to finish! Short chapters and a dual timeline kept me on my toes.

Norah is such a well-written character and I connected with her immediately. She is strong and independent yet careful and aware. I love her connections with her friends and especially her relationship with a possible new love interest. Their chemistry is electric and the little bit of spice thrown in the mix really shakes things up! It keeps your mind going back-and-forth from hunting a killer to rooting for Norah to finally find her soulmate.

Jessica Payne has delivered another must-buy book for any thriller lover! I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of Jennifer Hillier or Gillian Flynn.

I have a weak spot for thrillers with a serial killer angle, and I couldn't resist the temptation to add The Lucky One to my shelves when I discovered the story offered exactly that. I've been looking forward to read it ever since, and I have to say that this psychological thriller definitely ended up delivering for me. Suspenseful, engaging, fast-paced and filled with danger and twists: The Lucky One is perfect for those who like their psychological thrillers on the dark side.

This story is told through the eyes of main character Norah, and we switch between ten years ago when she first escaped the serial killer and the present. The prologue gives you a proper taste of what the story is going to be like; what a way to start with a bang! The plot focuses more on the present POV than the flashbacks, and I like it this way. It's interesting to see how Norah reacted to what happened to her, and how this affects everything in the present as well... Especially after she returns to Kansas City and things start going south.

I'm not sure up to what point I actually like the characters, but Norah made for an interesting character to follow and the rest all played their part well. The only thing I wasn't too big of a fan of was the romance element (and especially the jealousy and love triangle vibes). I also have to say that I had suspicions about the identity of Hansel early on, and sadly they turned out to be right... Then again, it's true that we don't have all that many suspects to choose from in the first place. The building up of suspense is well done though and there are plenty of dangerous moments and twists to keep you on your toes. The pace is fast and combined with the engaging writing style it's very easy to just keep turning those pages.

All in all The Lucky One turned out to be a successful serial killer thriller for me. It's an entertaining, fast-paced and twisty read that you will be able to fly through in no time at all. I will be looking forward to try more of her books in the future!

Ten years ago, Norah was the survivor of an attack by a serial killer. Her best friend was killed in the attack, but Norah manage to convince them to let her walk out. The police were sceptical at the time, but there’s nothing to contradict her story. People regard her as lucky, but Norah clearly believes she has unfinished business. Since that time Norah has done her best to train, becoming a fighter so she can take on the man who tried to kill her if she ever gets the chance.
When we first meet Norah she is heading back to her home town to bury her father. Upon arrival another close friend is found dead. Someone begins sending Norah messages, which strongly suggests the killer - Hansel (after his breadcrumb trail left near the victims) - is back and keen to finish things off. Quite early on it's suggested that the killer has to be someone close to her, but we go round in circles rather as Norah and her friends try to work out what's going on.
There’s no denying this was a pacy, at times tense, thriller. However, the characters felt unnaturally exaggerated, and the reality of the situation had minimal credibility once the extent of the planning undertaken was revealed. In spite of this it was a read certain to reel you in. Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this prior to publication in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Ten years ago, Norah survived a serial killer while her friend did not. People refer to her as the Lucky One for escaping, but her entire life changed on that day and things have never been the same. She channeled her fear into becoming a badass MMA fighter and coach in preparation for the possibility of facing the killer again one day. Flash forward to present day, when the death of a family member brings Norah home for the first time in 10 years. Another death leads Norah to believe Hansel, the serial killer, may be back. And this time she is ready for him.

The prologue of this fast paced thriller will immediately hook you and make you need to read more. The author has a fantastic suspenseful writing style, with short chapters ending in cliffhangers making you unable to resist reading just one more. The characters are well developed, and Norah in particular is a strong, courageous female to lead the story. There are several unsavory characters that become suspects throughout the story, and red herrings and plot twists galore. Some scenes were so tense that I was nervous to keep reading but at the same time I just couldn’t stop!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC of this compelling thriller. I’ll be going back to read Jessica Payne’s first book after reading this one, and would highly recommend The Lucky One!

An addictive game of cat and mouse and sometimes the answers are closer than you think

This was a relatively fast paced thriller focusing on Norah, the survivor of an serial killer a decade earlier. The story is mostly set in the present, with some chapters throwing back to earlier. It seemed a little too easy for her to have escaped the first time, which had me understanding other characters desperation for the answers as to how. I thought I had guessed earlier in the book who Hansel was but I was tricked by the breadcrumbs and had formed a different opinion before the true identity was revealed

A solid story which had me turning the pages to keep finding out what happened next.

Thanks to @netgalley and @bookouture for an advanced copy. The Lucky One is set for release on 14 September 2022

I just finished reading The Lucky one by Jessica Payne and here is my review.

Leaving the prom early was the biggest mistake they could ever have made. Norah was lucky to have escaped the serial killer with her life, her best friend August, wasn’t so lucky.
Everyone calls her the lucky one for surviving but Norah feels anything but lucky. Never having caught the person who killed her best friend and was named Hansel by the tabloids, Norah spends her life in MMA as a measure of control and releasing the victim mantra she doesn’t want to possess.
Having to return to her hometown after the passing of her father, Norah is thrown back into a world she never wanted to come back to. Everyone wants to know how she escaped a serial killer. Then the messages start and she realizes that Hansel has spent the last 10 years waiting for her to come home. Who can she trust where she can barely trust herself?
This is my second read by this author so my expectations were through the roof…. This book nailed it all!! Loved it. Loved every single second of the build up of brilliance. Getting a glimpse into the kind of serial killer that doesn’t quite fit the mold was illuminating!
This book is set between two times, 10 years in the past and present day and that worked really well for giving us more to Norah’s story. While Norah is a reliable narrator in my opinion, I always felt like we never really knew what was going on and the twists just didn’t stop coming! I had no idea who it was… At all and I believe I blamed every single person close to her at least twice! I was foiled though! I bow down to greatness. The character development was on point and the whole atmosphere of the book had a slightly menacing feel to it and I always felt a little rattled for Norah. The unease was so tangible it was like I was living through it with her. My heart rate took a while to come down, that's for sure.
5 stars. I read a lot of thrillers so my expectations are always high but this one nailed it.
If you love feeling that little bead of terror running down your spine when you read, then you need to get this one ASAP!!
Thank you to @jessicapayneauthor for another nail biter, and to #netgalley and #bookouture for my review copy

The Lucky One by Jessica Payne was an absolutely amazing psychological thriller that I didn’t want to stop reading.
Norah escaped a terrible situation when she was a teenager. Now it’s all happening again. Norah has to figure out who the man of her nightmares are in order to protect her friends.
This story was faced paced and made me stay up way to late to see what happened. This story has many red herrings that leave you saying what.
Highly recommend this book.

The pace of the story in the beginning was a bit slow for me though it did keep me engaged as the story progressed.
A psychological thriller with short chapters that will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat!
This my first book to read by this author. I hope to read more by her in the future.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

As a senior in high school, Norah and one of her best friends are taken by a serial killer. Norah manages to escape. Now years later she’s back in her hometown after the death of her father. Once she arrives home more people around her start being killed and disappearing. Could the same serial killer be back? Is it a copycat? With intense media coverage it’s hard to tell. This book definitely kept my attention and kept me questioning things. It was also very creepy and chilling, wasn’t something I was reading right before bed.

I was very excited to receive an early copy of The Lucky one, after reading and loving Jessica’s debut novel Make Me Disappear. Many thanks to @bookouture @netgalley and @jessicapayne

Ten years ago, I survived a serial killer. They called me the lucky one, but they don’t know the truth I’ve been hiding ever since…

Then: We danced together that night, our dresses glittering in the swirling lights. We couldn’t have known that for one of us, it would be our last night alive.

Now: Back in my hometown a decade later—the place I’ve avoided because of the memories—I can’t shake the feeling that I am being followed. I tell myself it’s all in my head, but the prickle on the back of my neck feels like a warning. Then the anonymous messages land in my inbox: I’m watching. I’ve been waiting for you.

Congratulations on another binge-worthy book. I flew through it! What I feel Jessica does really well, is hold your attention, through her fluent and suspenseful writing style. From relatable, flawed characters to short, pacy chapters - cleverly ending on cliff hangers, she propels you to read on and uncover the truth. I enjoyed the duel timeline told from past flashbacks to the present. The compelling tension throughout had me gripped to the climactic ending. Although, I was fairly confidant I had guessed the culprit, it was still a surprise to find out I was right.

Highly recommended if you’re after a fast paced psychological thriller! Out next week.

I have high expectations for thrillers. One of the things I love about thrillers is that it always keeps me on my toes but this was not what I expected. There was a lot going on with no substance and I was disappointed by the lack of proper thriller experience promised by the synopsis.

This novel contains dual timelines and I think it lacked structure. Things were all over the place and I had a hard time keeping track of what was going on. I also thought there was a lot of repetition. I think there was a lot that could be cut out. It was a quick read even though there were a lot of chapters.

Most of the chapters ended with a cliffhanger. I can’t DNF books and I think that was why I continued reading this. Hoping it was getting better but it did not. As the story progressed I did think it was a little bit better because the drama started unfolding. The ending was thrilling because I wanted to see what was going to happen.

I knew who the serial killer Hansel was from a mile away. It was so obvious and the more I thought, it became more obvious who Hansel was. As much as I wanted to enjoy this, there was too much going on and I think many things needed to be edited out.

I also think the writing could’ve been better. With some structure and editing, this book could become a lot better.

The short chapters and flashbacks were a bonus for me, cause that makes it a very fast read and keeps the pace up. This story is a cat and mouse whodunit, has a few dead bodies and a bunch of plot twists. But I did have a little trouble believing certain things that happened in the story. I won't go into too much detail, cause that would be spoiling. But there's a few things where I was like "that doesn't feel realistic" and "HOW COULD SHE NOT HAVE KNOWN WHEN EVEN I KNOW" *ahem* I'm fine, I'm not frustrated about it at all anymore. Heh.

The author did throw some great breadcrumbs out there, cause I figured out who the killer was very early on (literally in the first few chapters). That didn't make it unjoyable or predictable for me, though, it just made me want to finish reading to see if I was right. And it left me feeling pretty smug afterwards. I'm a detective, period.

Even though this hasn't been my favourite thriller that I've ever read, Jessica Payne is definitely a skilled writer and gave her readers an enjoyable psychological thriller. It has a very interesting premise and I do think I'll be checking out more of her work after reading this one!

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture and the author for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Overall rating: ★★★

4+ stars.

If you enjoyed Make Me Disappear by this author, you will love The Lucky One. It had me gripped from the first page and I was almost too scared to keep reading.The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

Ten years ago Norah Silverton and her friend August were abducted by the serial killer known as Hansel. August was killed quickly, but Norah managed to convince Hansel that she could understand and love someone like him, but that her father was sick and she needed to go to him. Surprisingly he let her go and said he would wait for her.

Of course Norah left town as soon as she possibly could after convincing the suspicious and very belligerent Detective Cron that she herself was not the killer.

Now, ten years later, Norah is back in town for her father’s funeral and it seems that Hansel (or someone) is targeting Norah’s friends. There are suspects galore and many red herrings. Can Norah save her remaining friends and avoid becoming Hansels final victim? This was a most suspenseful and exciting read that I thoroughly enjoyed although it did jangle my nerves! Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the much appreciated arc which I reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

I wanted to love this one. But the serial killer “Hansel” was sooo obvious to me. How did Norah not recognize his voice? It was just a little ridiculous to me.

I enjoyed Jessica Payne’s first novel, #MakeMeDisappear, so I was excited when I was given the opportunity to read an ARC of her new novel, The Lucky One. This book sucked me in from the beginning and I didn’t want to have to put it down until I finished.

Norah is kidnapped and narrowly escapes a serial killer when she is a senior in high school. She leaves home after graduation to get away from the memories and begin a new life. A decade later, she returns home after receiving news of her father’s death. It doesn’t take long before she realizes that the killer is back and has a score to settle with her.

As I read, I kept trying to guess who Hansel, the serial killer, was. I loved the twists and turns that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the book. This was a quick read as I kept going for “just one more chapter.” It was a clever story with likeable characters and well structured plot lines.

I highly recommend this novel to those who love psychological thrillers.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #Bookoutre for the ARC copy of #TheLuckyOne by #JessicaPayne - 5 stars

I thought this book was ok but very far fetched. I don't know why but it just didn't grip me and I saw how it would end but dismissed it as being too obvious. I can see lots of people have reviewed this book and loved it but it just didn't grab me and I can't explain why! Overall an ok read but not entirely my cup of tea. Sorry!