Awesome book. Loved the character development! It was intriguing, kept my interest throughout the story line.

Definitely will be keeping my eye out for her other books. Thank you Ellen Won Steil, Lake Union Publishing, and Netgalley for this book in exchange for a review.

A fun, twisty read! The characters were in-depth and the writing was spectacular. Looking forward to Won Steil's next!

Filled with page turning suspense. The multiple POV’s were a little confusing at times but overall a fantastic read.
Many thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

In a small town in Iowa, a DNA lottery is announced and funded by the recent widow of a multi-million dollar mogul. Her late husband was interested in the mysterious unsolved case of Baby Ava, whose remains were tragically found nearly 20 years ago. Can the DNA lottery help to uncover the truth about what happened all those years ago?

This book had a really interesting premise, but it missed the mark for me. It was told with multiple POVs, which I normally enjoy, but I feel like in this case, it made the story very confusing. I also thought the pacing was off, which made it hard to want to keep reading. The middle of the story was really slow, but the end contained a lot of quick connections that didn't make a lot of sense or seem very believable to me. I wish the author would have focused on one or two main plots instead of so many side conflicts that were loosely tied together. Overall, I would give this author another try because the plot was unique for a thriller, but this one was a miss for me.

2.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

You ever have those books that you keep meaning to get to, but for some reason or another it just doesn't happen until one day - you are like, right I am going to read this one now. That was me with Fortune by Ellen Won Steil. This book was a rollercoaster read and when I read books like this about wealthy men and the philandering that goes on, it does make me wonder are they all like this because they are rich and powerful? In Fortune, the book starts with our wealthy couple Edie and Johnny getting into a car accident. The book then jumps to Edie going to the bank and opening Johnny's safety deposit box. In there lays a single photo of a baby and three names on the back. Edie believes that this is Baby Ava, a baby who was found dead in Avalon Park twenty years ago. The case was never solved and she believes this was her husband's dying wish. She has her PI find out everything about the three women as she believes they are all connected and one of them knows something. Edie also has another secret, so to find out the heir to the Power fortune, she designs a game - a DNA lottery and whoever matches to either Baby Ava or someone else "unknown sub" till the end of the book, will inherit a fortune worth millions. Read as three women and their families' lives will all intertwine as the past comes back to haunt several women and families in the small town of Rosemary Hills. If you love family stories, domestic thrillers, and secrets - then check out Fortune by Ellen Won Steil.

Exciting premise and suspenseful story - A DNA Lottery is held - but is it to identify a long lost relative or something very, very different.

Many years ago a baby disappeared and it is thought that this DNA might help determine what happened. A billionaire widower tried to entice the entire town to participate. New citizen Cleo is thinking it over -and needs to decide. Suspenseful great first novel!

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the digital ARC. This review is my own opinion and not in anyway influenced by others. This book had a promising plot but for me the writing was disjointed and stilted. I picked it up and put it down multiple times. While I was able to finish it, I did have to push through.

Fortune by Ellen Won Steil was a story I really enjoyed. It was well written and the characters and plot seemed to come to life. I thought the writing was easy to read and also atmospheric. An interesting debut that had me flipping the pages so late at night.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity to read this ahead of its publication date in return for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

This book may have been a bit predictable, but it did not make it any less enjoyable. A small town, secrets, money, all of it can be found in these pages. A great read.

Fortune is a powerhouse story layered in mystery and intrigue surrounding the connection of three women and a tragedy. It's a story of mothers and their children, with deep roots of darkness that spans two decades. Having reached the end, it's a book I need to read all over again. A fabulous debut. I can see this as a TV series one day.

This book immediately gripped me I couldn't put it down. I would definitely read more by this author.

An excellent debut novel! Multi perspective and full of small town Midwestern secrets, the bonds of family and friendship, and some subtle turns in the story.

The unique premise of this psychological thriller had me hooked from the beginning. A wealthy widow hosts a DNA lottery to help solve the murder of a newborn that happened almost 20 years ago. The book looks at the very different lives of three women who shared a secret in high school and how the secret impacted them.

A familiar plot- three woman, an unidentified dead infant, and years of secrets and lies- with a twist. Finally DNA comes to play and here, there's a financial incentive, Cleo, Jemma, and Alex all would benefit from the $1 million but there's a big big downside. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I might have guessed but that doesn't mean the storytelling isn't good and that this isn't a page turner.

A propulsive thriller with high emotional payout, FORTUNE has all the best elements of suspense: a claustrophobic, small town with secrets cloaked in money, blood, and ambition, four main characters who are flawed yet sympathetic, and a palpable sense of anxious foreboding.

As an avid suspense reader and writer, I’m usually able to figure out plot twists by the midpoint. Not so with Fortune. Ellen Won Steil kept me guessing until the very end. Brilliantly plotted and paced!

When ultra-rich Jonathan Parker is killed in a freak accident, his wife Edie makes a startling discovery: Jonathan had been looking into an unsolved murder that’s haunted the town of Rosemary Hills, Iowa, for decades. Determined to honor her husband’s wishes, Edie hatches a plan to entice the residents of Rosemary Hills into voluntarily providing their DNA in exchange for a piece of the Parker fortune, hoping to finally crack the case.

This book grabbed me from the first pages and refused to let go. I’m a sucker for a great mystery, rich people's problems, bold plot twists, and interwoven stories that revolve around complicated female characters. FORTUNE delivered on all fronts (and then some!). In addition to Edie, the story revolves around Jemma, a state senator struggling with fertility, Cleo, a newly single mother and recovering people pleaser, and Alex, a strait-laced attorney from a wildly dysfunctional family. As each woman’s story unfolds, their past, present, and future fates collide in shocking and unexpected ways.

I didn’t see the twists and turns this novel took coming! What a fun and satisfying ride. I can honestly say that I haven’t read anything like it before. I’m already eagerly awaiting Ellen Won Steil’s next book!

I had no idea where this book was going, in the best way possible. Full of interconnecting storylines and characters, decade-hopping flashbacks, and an unusual premise that becomes completely believable and tense as you navigate it alongside the women, it had me guessing and second-guessing until the very end. The twisty pacing carried by Cleo, Alex, Jemma, and Edie's relatable voices makes Fortune one to devour!

Oh my goodness, this book! I was intrigued by the premise, but Ellen Won Steil did so much more with it than I was anticipating. Not only is it a propulsive psychological thriller; it’s also a nuanced look at the lives of four very different women struggling in their present lives as they contend with dark secrets and pain in their past. How she balanced all that, plus the mystery, an and a dual timeline, I can’t begin to tell you. But it works, and it’s so good! If life didn’t get in the way, I would have read this is in one delicious gulp.

Desperate to solve a 20 year old case, billionaire makes a DNA lottery. Anyone in a small Iowa town can give their DNA to be entered into a multimillion dollar windfall. Someone has to know something about baby Ava and suspicion falls on Cleo, Jemma and Alex. Fortune is a fun mystery that dives into small town life. I did get a little confused at times with all the characters and different point of views but the ending was well written and shocking.

I thought that this was a very new and interesting concept for a thriller. The idea of a DNA lottery is really thought provoking and weird to think about how this could become a reality.