🌟🔥 5 STAR BOOK REVIEW 🔥🌟 featuring “Only If You’re Lucky” by Stacy Willingham!

Margot’s first year at college is nothing like the one she pictured with her bestfriend Eliza. She ends up going alone and spends the year studying and keeping to herself. Eliza was the outgoing one who always pushed Margot out of her comfort zone. Without her, Margot feels lost, alone and uncertain. That is UNTIL she meets Lucy at the end of the year. And then EVERYTHING changes.

Margot agrees to move into a house with three girls who are complete strangers. Lucy is the popular “it” girl and Margot cannot understand why she was chosen as the lucky one to move into a house with them. Soon she gets introduced to the REAL college life: late nights, fraternity parties, drinking, drugs and being totally rebellious. Margot starts to feel like she belongs to something since Eliza … until a boy in the frat house next door ends up murdered and Lucy goes mysteriously missing without a trace 🤫

BRAVO to Stacy Willingham on yet another outstanding thriller! The dark academia vibes, the dangerous side of female friendships and the sinister effects of jealousy all come together perfectly 🫶🏻

Thank you kindly to @stacyvwillingham @minotaur_books @stmartinspress @netgalley for my advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review! This stunner releases on January 16th, 2024! If you loved “In My Dreams I Hold a Knife” or “The It Girl”, then you need this one on your TBR!!

“What we did together is tattooed across all of us now, a permanent mark like a friendship bracelet tied right around our wrists. Like a broken heart drawn in sunscreen, only while when we stick together. In time, it may fade but it’ll never truly be gone - because if one goes down, we all go down, which might be the most steadfast act of friendship I’ve ever even known”. - Only If You’re Lucky

This was a little bit of a disappointment for me because I really enjoyed this author's other two books and this one felt very different. This was a slow moving story which on one hand I can understand because this author really wanted us to get invested in the characters but I think it took to long for us to get to the root of this mystery. This was told in a before/after timeline which I really don't think was necessary because the after timeline chapters were extremely short and most of the time didn't really provide anything important or interesting. The big thing with this book were the characters and unfortunately they just weren't that interesting to me. There was nothing that really drew me into them like I wanted. I did think some of the reveals were interesting but still nothing that ultimately blew me away. This one didn't work for me like I was hoping but I will still continue to pick up more from this author.

I loved Stacy Willingham’s last two novels. Only if You’re Lucky is the story of Margot who recently lost her best friend and spent the last yeah basically hiding as she started college. When the popular girl who seems larger than life asks her to be the 4th roommate in a house off campus she sees it as an opportunity to start living again. Told and two timelines we see her moving into this house and becoming friends with Lucy and Lucy missing and her and the roommates being questioned about where she can be. The premise is interesting and drew me in but the passing was slow at points and left me not wanting to read it as fast as Stacy’s last books. The connections and what you learn throughout was a good twist I just wished it was executed a little better. I did like the Jekyll and Hyde mentions throughout the book that makes you wonder about good and evil and who that might really apply to. I did not like Eliza’s story or really understand her motivations. Might have rated higher if her parts were different.

What a twisted tale! Some many tangles in this one!

Admittedly, it was a slow start. I really struggled in the beginning. It was very descriptive & took a bit for me to be fully invested. A bit repetitive.

But then at like 70%, it ramped all the way up and i flew through it. The twists and turns and the revelations had me flipping them pages so fast!

I was shocked by the end. The web of lies was spun so tight!!! Sooo good! There’s one thing i had guessed but the many others, i was surprised by!

Stacy Willingham is still an autobuy author for me!

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: January 16, 2024
Stacy Willingham, author of “A Flicker in the Dark”, brings mystery, intrigue and the complex naiveté of blooming female friendships, and the desire to belong with her new novel, “Only If You’re Lucky”.
Margot is hoping her first year of college will broaden her horizons- and allow her to start over after losing her best friend, Eliza, in a terrible accident a few months before. When she meets Lucy Sharpe, gregarious, beautiful and captivating, Margot is quickly taken under her spell. Soon Lucy and Margot are sharing an off-campus house with two of Lucy’s friends, Nicole and Sloane, and the four develop a close bond almost immediately. But through all the parties, the studying and the late-night hangouts, Margot begins to notice that something is off about Lucy, and she’s seeing connections to Eliza that she can’t explain. Is Margot willing to risk her newfound sense of belonging in order to uncover the truth of who Lucy really is?
“Lucky” is both gripping and entertaining, not only thick with the theme of grief and loss, but also the fragility of newfound relationships and the desperation to belong and become something better. The story is told completely by Margot, in the time before an incident, and the time after, although most of the story takes place within the same year time frame. Slowly, Margot reveals the secrets of her past, as she tries to keep her new relationship with Lucy afloat.
Margot is easy to relate to, albeit a little naïve and self-conscious (although who isn’t at that age?). As the reader finds out more and more about who she is, a quick alliance is formed. There is sympathy for Margot as well, as she tries to recover from the trauma of losing her closest friend. Throughout the novel there is a subtle mystique about Lucy, and when the truth was revealed, it was both shocking and unexpected. I loved the twists and turns that Willingham delivered!
“Only If You’re Lucky” pulled me in from the start, and I struggled to put it down! I was immediately invested in the outcome, and was desperate to know the truth about Lucy (and Levi, too, for that matter). I loved how Willingham tied the ending together so nicely, while still managing to add an entertaining twist!

Thank you @minotaur_books for the #gifted copy of this book!

This is my third book by Stacy and once again she delivers! Out of the 3 I’ve read this one is not my most favorite but still very entertaining and enjoyable!

It’s been a while since I’ve read dark academia which is actually one of my favorite things to read about. In this book, we meet Margot who is a young woman trying to escape her hometown and all of the sadness that comes with losing her best friend Eliza back home. She attends college out of state and ends up meeting a group of girls, Nicole, Sloane, and Lucy. These group of girls help her come out of her shell and really come into her own personality, especially Lucy. I don’t want to give too much away here but Levi, a boy from Margot’s hometown turns up at college and stirs up feelings from Margot’s past. Soon one of the fraternity boys ends up dead and Lucy disappears. The police and college students try to uncover what happened and secrets, lies, envy and deceit unravels friendships and loyalties.

I liked the alternating timelines where we gained insight into the younger Eliza and Margot. I once again fall for everything the author throws at me so I was 100% shocked at the ending. Just call me Gullible McGee over here. 🤣 The ending was pretty intense and although not completely believable i still loved how it unfolded. I also really loved to hear about the author basing this idea on her real life college home. 💕 I’ve got one of those houses from my college career which completely took on a life of its own thanks for a slumlord so I understand why her house stuck out to her! It made me love the book even more. 😍 If you’re looking for a dark academia book with shocking twists grab yourself a copy. It will be published soon!

I had high expectations for this as I loved her book A Flicker in the Dark, but I overall just found this book okay. It never really hooked me and the the main character Margo annoyed me some of the times. It didnt pack the punch I felt her prior two books did.

I first want to start by saying I absolutely loved “Flicker in the Dark” I couldn’t put it down as soon as I cracked the spine. This was definitely not quite the same. The story was a much slower paced story telling.

I will say that in this book and unusual thing happened. I didn’t tie parts of this story together until it was unfolding. I can usually do it easy with suspense/thriller reads. Not this time! The twists and turns of the main characters had my saying “what” out loud several times. So while a slow burn there were definitely big positives of the story overall.

In regards to the overall book: The characters are well developed, the plot line precise while detailed & well rounded. There aren’t gaps or portions that leave holes or questions left hanging. I really enjoyed the before/after perspectives of the story.

A synopsis of the book is that Margot a naive high schooler is mourning the death of her best friend as she heads off to her 1st year in college. While there she realizes how much the loss of her energetic & outgoing friend has impacted her life, of which she begins to be drawn to a similar girl (Lucy) at school. They become roommates year two. And the true story of her friends death begins to unravel that involves her new roommate, her dead best friend/her family and her dead best friends boyfriend. Along with a fraternity house rental, true to life college experiences like out of hand frat parties & two roommates who she will carry a forever bond with in life. You will likely find yourself working through the slow burn of the story to find out what the real tea is tying everyone together.

Huge thank you to Minotaur Books, St. Martins Press & NetGalley for this early reader copy in return for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collin’s for this ARC! This was a great read with one of my favorite settings, a college/fraternity. There was great character dynamic and a solid twist right at the end. The timeline jumps were a little confusing at times as to where we were time wise but overall enjoyable and twisty read!

"Only If You're Lucky" was another unputdownable Thriller from Stacy Willingham.

I really enjoyed how this story was told in a dual timeline, the small glimpses of the past helped me understand the present predicament that the main characters found themselves in. As always the author threw in some well-placed twists and turns that made this a thrilling read.

I will absolutely be recommending this book often, this author puts out very solid Thrillers and her books are becoming auto-buys for me!

Thank you Stacy Willingham, Net Galley and St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Oooh this was good! Neither of her subsequent books has matched Flicker in the Dark for me, but Willingham remains a dependable choice for solid psychological/crime thrillers.

As a main character, I did not find Margot very compelling. However, I kind of think that was on purpose? She was meant to be a blank slate, that’s how she was written; I just prefer a main character I can really root for. That being said, the plot was strong enough to carry this novel despite its lack of a character I truly cared for.

The twists were twisty as ever - Willingham does not disappoint when it comes to twists in her novels! I predicated a couple of them, but failed to put all the pieces together and was satisfied with how the author tied it all together.

Overall, this was a really solid read. I enjoyed it, I didn’t want to put it down, I mulled over the possible answers to the countless questions as the book went on, but ultimately this didn’t hit 5 star status for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

4/5

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC. I wanted to love this one so much because I liked both of Stacy Willingham’s books. I was excited to see that I was approved for this one but this one not for me. The book was detailed but not interesting to me which I feel it was due to the age of the characters. I am not quite sure as I have children the age of characters in the novel but I just found this book ..strange...😞. I want to be approved again for one of her books and I know this has to be just a one off.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this advance copy. I absolutely loved this author’s debut novel - A Flicker in the Dark, and also enjoyed All the Dangerous Things. This newest fell a little flat for me. I loved the slow burn suspense and the writing style. I just couldn’t get invested in the story and the characters seemed one dimensional and dull. It came across as leaning towards YA, which isn’t a genre I usually enjoy. I’ve seen many other early reviewers loving this book, so I have no doubt it will find many happy readers.

Dang. I'm so sad. I really wanted to like this one, but it just wasn't for me. I couldn't get past all of the mumbo-jumbo in the first couple of chapters, so I had to let it go.

Sad to say that I didn’t like this book as much as her other books. A flicker in the dark was a 5 star read for me, all the dangerous things was 4 stars and this one was 3/2.5 stars. I do love a college mystery but this just didn’t do it for me.

Set on a college campus, we follow roommates, who live in a house connected to a frat house.

Margot is the narrator and used to be a very responsible girl until she met up with Lucy, Nicole, and Sloane. Lucy was especially poisonous.

Margot also arrived at college three weeks after her high school friend had passed away. That hangs over the storyline the entire time, and she is the gist of the book.

The book goes back-and-forth when Margo’s friend was alive and then back-and-forth current day when they tell what happened before one of the frat guys is murdered and after he is murdered.…very confusing.

It did give you something to think about, though.

Do you really know your friends?

Do you really make the right choices for your friends?

Things did become revealed in the end, but ONLY IF YOU’RE LUCKY just didn't cut it for me.

There is a huge twist at the end, but not enough to raise up my rating.

It was not a book that I wanted to get back to. The college antics simply dragged. A dark read. 2/5

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

This book was not what I was expecting. Honestly, I found the first 80% of it rather boring. I did not care for the dual time line and the ending was just OK.
When Margot goes off to college she is grieving her best friend that recently died. She stayed to herself until Lucy, a popular girl, invited her to move in with them. They live next door to a frat house & there's always something going on. There's lots of twists at the end. It was overall a slow burn with unlikable characters. Unfortunately, this one just was not for me.
Thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“One day we were strangers and the next we were friends. That’s how it usually works with girls”.

Margot is a shy freshman at Rutledge University. Still deeply mourning her best friend, who died that past summer, Margot is delighted when the popular Lucy takes a liking to her. There is something magnetic about Lucy that draws Margot in - she has been craving the attention only a best friend can can provide. And Lucy has a way of making everyone around her feel special. That’s what Lucy does - she dangles, especially if someone is “too nice”; at least, that’s what Lucy’s roommates tell Margot when she moves into their apartment.

I have found myself reading a lot of stories lately about the dynamics of female friendships. Maybe it is just the point I am at in life, but these types of bonds have a soft spot in my heart these days. But there was nothing warm and fuzzy about these girls - at least, not in the way you would think with a group of college roommates. Told in dual timelines, readers follow the present day story of Lucy’s mysterious disappearance along with what happened when Margot first met her. I found Lucy fascinating; a strong, charismatic female who reached out to the shy, quiet girl-next-door. I can definitely relate a lot to Margot, but I think it’s easy for anyone to see why she would be so drawn to Lucy. If you have ever been the shy one, the different one, or the one who often feels like they are on the outside looking in, you would welcome the attention of someone who seemed to have it all. Without giving any spoilers, I knew Lucy was different, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on why. As with Stacy Wilingham’s previous two books, I completely missed the big twist and I love when that happens! Lol.

Thank you to Netgalley, Minotaur Books and Stacy Wilingham for the ARC! “Only If You’re Lucky” releases January 16, 2024.

This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

I've read three of this authors books and there's always something familiar about the plot lines, like I've read this book before. Her previous books were definitely a lot more exciting than this one, I found it really hard to care about the characters, especially Margot. She's obsessive and cringy, this book read as a bad YA novel. Unfortunately didn't do it for me.

I have loved Stacy Willingham writing and books so much so I was so excited to have the opportunity to read her next release early and I was pleasantly surprised. Willingham creates a twisting plot throughout her novels by throwing in a lot of information and motives. This allows the reader to maybe guess an aspect or two of where the story is leading but there is always a more complicated twist that is surprising when I read her books.

This book is a look at the dynamics between friends in high school and in a college setting while also dealing with grief and depression relating to a friends death. When the book first started I was not sure if it would be something that would grip me, but as time went on I grew more and more invested on the characters and the stories that they needed to tell.

There are quite a few murders that happen throughout the novel and the motive behind each action creates a interesting plot and climax. I can't wait to see what else Stacy Willingham brings to the library next.

I recommend this for readers who enjoy a college-setting and a timeline that jumps from past to present.