Stacy Willingham’s writing is phenomenal! It has a way of sucking you in from the very first page and won’t let you go until the very end. Even then, it’ll have you up all night thinking about what you just read.

One thing I will say about this book is you need to go into it blind! That ending was NOT what I was expecting and it was great! The beginning was a little slow but it started picking up and I was immediately hooked. I loved the gothic academia feel this story had and I enjoyed the before and now POV’s.

If you love toxic friendships with murder then I highly recommend picking this one up! This beauty is out now! Thank you so much to Minotaur and Netgalley for the e-arc!

Only If You're Lucky (ARC)
Stacy Willingham
3.5⭐️

Again, another one of my most anticipated reads this year that unfortunately didn't take hold of me. I'm just so sad!

This book started off really interesting to me. Enough to obviously keep me going. But maybe around 20% of the book, it started stagnating. It's still interesting because of the premise- like what really happened to Eliza, Levi and Lucy. But how it was written and presented was not as compelling to me as I want it to be. I think the frat/college scene was just too mundane. It was just okay. It picks up by around 60%. I did get thrown off several times about what actually happened and who did what! Honestly did not expect the actual plot to turn out this way so that took hold of my attention. However, the way it ended was also not as satisfying.

I struggled reading and finishing this book. I could not be bothered to pick it back up except I did out of obligation because it was an ARC generously given to me. I do wish I liked this a lot more.

Thank you @minotaurbooks and @macmillan.audio for my gifted book. My thoughts are my own.

As Margot is mourning the death of her high school best friend, Eliza, she reluctantly goes off to a small college in South Carolina. Margot struggles through her freshman year and even though her roommate is nice, she is not Eliza. At the end of her freshman year, Lucy Sharpe notices Margot and invites her to live in a house she shares with 2 other girls. The house is owned by a fraternity and the girls can live there inexpensively because one of them has a boyfriend in the fraternity. As Margot becomes almost obsessed with Lucy, she is stunned when Eliza’s boyfriend Levi moves into the frat house next door and Lucy becomes involved with him. Before the end of the school year, Lucy goes missing and one of the frat boys next door is murdered.

I don’t usually enjoy novels that take place during college (unless I am reading a YA book), but I did enjoy this one. The slow-burn story unfolds through alternate timelines and we gradually learn surprising truths about all the main characters. The conclusion is stunning.

I enjoyed this one but if you have not read this author, I recommend you start with A Flicker in the Dark or All the Dangerous Things first.

Thank you Minotaur Books for the advanced digital copy!

Okay, I’ll be honest, this one started off slow. There was a lot of building things up and I just wanted things to start happening. And then they did. There’s a lot of red herrings, which I expected because I feel like that’s kind of the author’s MO, but the twists were solid and did not disappoint. Margot’s internal critiques and insecurities felt way too familiar to early college Cait and let’s just say I’m glad things worked out differently for me 😂

While I think the book probably could’ve been more engaging in the beginning and definitely could’ve have gotten the same effect in less pages, I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who loved Flicker In The Dark or likes stories where you don’t know who to trust.

While I was sucked into this storyline immediately, it is more of a “slow burn” psychological thriller.

The story is told from the POV of Margot, a shy girl who has been described as bland and boring. She is befriended by an outgoing, free spirited girl in college named Lucy. Margot can’t figure out why, but she is so desperate to belong that she doesn’t question it when Lucy invites her to move into the extra room at her house, which is connected to Kappa Nu (a frat house).

Margot had been through a lot recently, between the death of her best friend and not making any new friends in her freshman year, so she jumped at the chance to accept Lucy’s offer.

Everything is going great until a person from her past shows up in that very same group of friends - the person she blames for her best friend’s death.

The characters are all young, irresponsible and unreliable. They are constantly partying, doing drugs, stealing, etc. One of the worst offenders was Lucy, yet all the girls in the house are completely drawn to her. It’s interesting to watch as she played games with them and I was intrigued on why they wanted to be friends with her when it seemed like all of them had their suspicions about her.

The story takes many twists and turns and I didn’t see a lot of them coming until they were right in my face. There’s a lot of suspense and anticipation with wanting to know what the heck happened and guessing how things would turn out in the end. Stacy Willingham does an amazing job at leaning into the psychological thriller aspect, and really makes you get into the minds and psyche of these characters.

The story goes back and forth between past and present timelines. One complaint I have is that sometimes it was a little hard to follow on which chapter was past and which was present since it was only listed at the beginning of some of the chapters and not all.

Thank you to NetGalley, Minotaur Books, and Stacy Willingham for the advanced copy!

Stacy Willingham does it again!! Every time I pick up a new book from Stacy, it’s better than the last.

The entire time I was following the story (I read along and listened), I was trying to figure out what was going on. I knew I wasn’t going to guess the exact details, but the way it was unfolding was very easy to follow and make guessing. Stacy gave us all the pieces of the puzzle with the final picture, but let us put it together chapter by chapter. I LOVED it. I was invested in the MC’s role and story, wanting her to tell me more and as much as possible.

The twists felt effortless! I didn’t feel the story became too much or unrealistic. Everything fell into place perfectly. Highly recommend.

Thanks so much NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

Willingham's three books have been completely different: an atmospheric serial killer book, a moody domestic mystery, and now, with Only If You're Lucky, a book that feels almost young adult. Set in college, Only If You're Lucky looks at female friendship plus a lot of teen toxicity and dysfunction.

The characters are unlikeable, the setting is evocative. I found it odd yet very compelling!

I had such high hopes for this book because I LOVED A Flicker in the Dark. I received an ARC copy of this book and started it a few days ago. This book focuses on a group of friends who are living in a house owned by the fraternity next door. Although, these girls seem to have the perfect friendship, we all know that can't last. United by the outgoing, Lucy, all 3 of the other girls find out that they were all chosen for a reason.

This is a good choice, if you are looking for a simple mystery "who done it" kind of thriller. I gave this book 3 stars because at times it was hard for me to pick up. Willingham's other books are such page turners that I thought this would be similar. However, because of the back and forth of the "before" and "after" I found it a little dull and not as interesting. The book get's good about 80% of the way through and I personally didn't guess the twist!

Overall, a decent read and I'm still going to keep this author on my auto-buy list.

This is one of my most anticipated books of the year. I listened to the audiobook for All the Dangerous Things and absolutely loved it. So, I was beyond excited by the opportunity to read an advance copy of Only If You’re Lucky. If you enjoyed Stacy’s other books I think you’ll like this one too. It’s dark academia and filled with secrets, lies, suspense, twists, and turns. Wow. Just wow. So much I didn't see coming. I'm planning to grab the audiobook for a reread.

Congrats Stacy for bringing us another thriller to add to our TBR! I have a love/hate with the college/dark academia genre. There are just too many unlikeable stereotypical characters involved. Often times the plot is also very predictable: frat parties, heavily drinking, murder, secrets, etc. Overall, I did enjoy it but definitely had some minor flaws in my opinion.
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For starters, I did find Margot’s inner monologue beyond repetitive. It was strangely obsessive and really made me dislike Margot for making a whole other person her personality. It felt really one dimensional for a min character, which might be Stacy’s point to begin with.
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I did enjoy all the plot twists though! I didn’t predict a lot of them. With this genre there is only so many ways it can go soooo I was happy with the ending and where Stacy took it.
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Overall, I’d place it at number #3 of her books:
1. A FLICKER IN THE DARK
2. ALL THE DANGEROUS THINGS
3. ONLY IF YOU’RE LUCKY
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𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 @𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘶𝘳_𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 @𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘳𝘤.

“𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕜𝕟𝕖𝕨 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕔𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕕 𝕘𝕖𝕥 𝕒𝕨𝕒𝕪 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕞𝕦𝕣𝕕𝕖𝕣, 𝕨𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕕 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕕𝕠 𝕚𝕥?”

Margot’s first year of college was a far cry from what she hoped it would be - dealing with the loss of her best friend Eliza who was supposed to be there with her has Margot on the sidelines. That is until magnetic, charming Lucy invites her to live off campus with her and Nicole and Sloane. Lucy loves to push the boundaries and frequent games of truth and dare are taking Margot out of her comfort zone in more ways than she could imagine. Until a part of her old life collides with this new college existence in unexpected ways…

This was a slow burn dark academia story of complexities or friendships that morphs into more of a twisty thriller in the last third of the book. Margot was not necessarily relatable but that did not impact my enjoyment of the story - relationships were at the heart of it and storytelling really pulled me in. Multiple timelines, including police investigation aspect of the story, had me in a “just one more chapter” mode.

Grab this one if you enjoy:
✏️ twisted female friendships
✏️ college setting
✏️ slow burn
✏️ great character development
✏️ beautiful covers 🫶

A huge thank you to @netgalley @minotaurbooks for gifting me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book - I read it in one sitting! Who is Lucy Sharpe? But more so, who is Margot? I found Margot to be such a complex character - I didn't know if I could trust her narration or version of events. She seems to idolize Eliza and then Lucy wanting to be more like them but she also seems judgmental of their decisions. The relationship between Lucy and Margot is interesting. And I just wanted to hug Nicole...

It felt realistic to have 4 very different people live together as roommates while in college and trying to fit in without getting too carried away and losing yourself.

Thank you to NetGalley & Minotaur Books for the eARC.

3.5/5 ⭐️(rounded up to 4)

Stacy Willingham’s thriller ALL THE DANGEROUS THINGS was one of my favorites from last year so I was extremely excited & honored to receive an early copy of her newest book! While I did enjoy the book, it didn’t quite meet my expectations. It’s very different from her previous 2 books which were true thrillers. Her newest book reads as more of a character driven suspense/drama with a dark academia setting & I’m learning that both of those things aren’t really my favorite😬. The pacing was a little slow up until the halfway point & then things finally picked up & grabbed my attention. Once the twists started coming I was truly shocked but the build up to get there took way too long for me. However, the last few chapters were so gripping that I felt like it was a reward for pushing through the first part of the book & I thought the ending was wrapped up really nicely. Overall, it was an enjoyable read but not my fave from her. I’m continually impressed by Willingham’s ability to write books that are totally different from each other & she will definitely still be an auto buy author for me!

This ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Friendships, secrets, trust, murder and mystery. It's all here in Only If You're Lucky. We're in college with Margot, a freshman living in the all-girl dorm. She's very sheltered, practically invisible, and suitably in a tizzy when Lucy (Miss Popular) draws her into her orbit and invites her to live off-campus for the summer in a house with the cool kids. 

Something's happened in the present day, and we go back into the past to see how the girls arrive there. This book is slow - there's action but a lot of it is taking place in Margot's head, which is full of rambling musings and memories. 

There's a mystery from the past too, Willingham dropping breadcrumbs along the way. Adding to the atmosphere is a creepy house. A genuinely creepy house, with secret nooks and a weird, damp and smelly shed in between the girls' house and the frat next door. The house itself feels like a character and lends the book a gothic flavor. 

With deliciously short chapters that will keep you turning the pages late into the night, the suspense builds to a satisfying knotty conclusion. 

My thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for the ARC.

Margot is a freshman and she is heading to school without her best friend, Eliza. Eliza was mysteriously killed 3 weeks before they were supposed to head to college. Her life is pretty boring until she meets Lucy, a mysterious girl with a magnetic and powerful personality. Not much is known about Lucy which makes her more appealing to others. While they are living together, a murder happens. Who did it? This reminded me so much of Pretty Little Liars.

Only If You’re Lucky was a gripping story of Margot away at college after the loss of her best friend and moving in with the captivating and mysterious girls Lucy, Sloane and Nicole. I was hooked as I tried to piece all the pieces of the mystery puzzle together to find out what happened to Lucy, who has gone missing. I liked the setting of the book taking place at college, where the girls under the roof of a fraternity owned house off campus. I lived in a sorority house in college and we had to rent half the house to a fraternity my junior year. So living underneath a fraternity during pledging was interesting to say the least so I thought this was an interesting aspect of the story. All in all I liked the book a lot and thought it was a quick exciting read with twists and Stacy Willingham is definitely an auto read author for me now.

Stacy Willingham is a fantastic writer, with a near-perfect ability to conjure up vivid and dynamic scenes and characters. I enjoyed A Flicker in the Dark, and truly adored All the Dangerous Things. Her latest, Only If You're Lucky, is a compelling character study of Margot, who is recovering from the death of her best friend when she joins a sorority. My main qualm with the mystery is that it doles out information at a very languid pace; and near the end, it falls into a trap where we're not provided insight by our first-person narrator about things she logically should be considering throughout the book. But overall, it's engaging, well-written, dynamic from beginning to end.

Only If You’re Lucky
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Stacy Willingham

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Lucy Sharpe is larger than life. Magnetic, addictive. Bold and dangerous. Especially for Margot, who meets Lucy at the end of their freshman year at a liberal arts college in South Carolina. Margot is the shy one, the careful one, always the sidekick and never the center of attention. But when Lucy singles her out at the end of the year, a year Margot spent studying and playing it safe, and asks her to room together, something in Margot can't say no—something daring, or starved, or maybe even envious.

And so Margot finds herself living in an off-campus house with three other girls, Lucy, the ringleader; Sloane, the sarcastic one; and Nicole, the nice one, the three of them opposites but also deeply intertwined. It's a year that finds Margot finally coming out of the shell she's been in since the end of high school, when her best friend Eliza died three weeks after graduation. Margot and Lucy have become the closest of friends, but by the middle of their sophomore year, one of the fraternity boys from the house next door has been brutally murdered... and Lucy Sharpe is missing without a trace.

My Thoughts: This was a gripping, captivating, creepy psychological thriller that kept me wanting more, even at the determinant of my own sleep. I have been a fan of Willingham with Flicker in the Dark and have been reading every book she publishes every year. This story follows a group of girls as they navigate college life, or so it seems. Margot meets Lucy at the end of her freshman college year and is attracted to Lucy, as she reminds her of her best friend from home. When Lucy invites Margot to live with her and two other girls, Margot cannot say no. They life off-campus next to a fraternity of boys. Margot is finally coming out of her shell after losing her best friend the year after high school graduation, and just as she does, a boy next door is murdered and Lucy is missing. What could have gone wrong? This follows a slow burn, classic whodunit mystery that is full of twists and turns, with more than enough suspects.

The story was narrated by Margot, in her POV, in a before and after narrative. Margot is shy, reserved, and always plays it safe, she sometimes care too much. Lucy is bold, dangerous, eccentric, and is a natural born leader. Lucy’s famous question, “If you knew you could get away with murder, would you do it?” rings loud throughout the novel. Then there is Sloane, who is always sarcastic and the glue that holds the group together. Lastly, we have Nicole, the nice, shy girl who is dating one of the fraternity boys, which allows them to have this rental off campus. The storyline embeds a true Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a true struggle between good and evil. Does a person do evil to promote the good? Or are inherently evil people always evil? The characters were developed well, with our female characters being unreliable, dark, mysterious, and intriguing. The supporting characters that also starred alongside our female friend group brings the story to another level. The author’s writing style was complex, suspenseful, had expert timing of revelations, with a cyclone plot, with a structure of the story was brilliant. The plot twists were well created with secrets, lies, and accusations, with an ending that was jaw dropping and maybe a bit stretched, however, still was entertaining.

I had the pleasure of having the digital and audio ARCs. I mostly listened to the story. Willingham is a master storyteller that can deliver twists embedded in twists and has a knack for keeping the reader invested from cover to cover. This book was different from Willingham’s first two books and fell a little short of the high bar she set, but I would still highly recommend this story.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an advanced e-copy of Only If You're Lucky by Stacy Willingham.

What it’s about:
Margot and Eliza have been inseparable since Kindergarten. They have shared all of their secrets, both good and bad for 18 years and are about to embark upon a new adventure together - college. But when a terrible accident happens, Margot finds herself having to figure out what this next season of life will look like on her own. Desperate to forget and find something (or someone) to replace the hole left in her life by Eliza's absence, Margot moves in to her dorm at Rutledge, the college the two girls had planned to attend together. However, learning to live without Eliza's confidence and bright light is tough for shy and inhibited Margot, so she spends most of her time in her room with her equally shy roommate Maggie, who does her best to encourage her when the memories become too much. At the end of freshman year, Margot is dreading going home for the summer, so when an opportunity presents itself for her to move in with three of the most popular girls at school, she decides to take it. Lucy, Sloane, and Nicole are joined at the hip, and Margot can't believe her good "luck" when the most magnetic of the trio, Lucy, asks her to become their fourth roommate. Lucy reminds Margot so much of Eliza - she is vibrant and vivacious and so sure of herself. The new roommates become closer through living together that summer and sharing the experience of living next door to the boys of Kappa Nu. But as the summer turns to Fall, and the new pledges begin to arrive, Margot and Lucy are faced with ghosts from their pasts, and Margot begins to wonder if her luck is about to run out.

What I loved:
THIS BOOK! Stacy Willingham has written a page-turner that kept me guessing up until the very end. This story has an "I Know What You Did Last Summer" vibe because of the characters' youth, and it takes place centered around a high school and college environment. Willingham has written story lines that are masterfully entangled, and she has painted such a dark and accurate picture of how female friendships can affect your decisions throughout your life. I really could feel how torn the characters were about their decisions and how desperation can cause people to do things that might never normally do. This is a must-read if you love books that will keep you reading long into the night to find out what happens!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In Only If You’re Lucky, we follow Margot in two time lines - “before” and “after.” “Before” follows Margot and her childhood best friend in high school, who we learn early on died before going to college, but we don’t know how or the details surrounding her death. In “After,” we follow Margot and two of her college roommates who are being questioned about their fourth roommate who’s gone missing and the death of a friend.

I felt like I guessed one part of the ending, but I didn’t see the other plot twists. That’s always my goal in mystery thrillers, to guess what happened. However, it took so long for any action or excitement to happen that I didn’t enjoy this book like I’ve enjoyed Stacy Willingham’s previous novels. I cared little about the characters, and just wanted something to happen much sooner to get me hooked. This is 2.5 stars rounded up for me.