This was a really fun read and totally not what I was expecting at all. Tons of music and "nerd" references what while based in pop culture will age well and not outdate quickly. Loved the relationship between the main character and their family. The friendship relationship between the characters at school was realistic and fun to see. I loved that there was a twin connection between the main character and their sister with out the idea that they had to spend all their time together and have all the same friends and interests. Lots of growth for the main character in a lot of ways and yet a fun and mostly fluffy read that teens will love to escape into. I will be reading this one again.

thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan for giving me a chapter sampler arc of this book. i'm going to preface this review by saying that this was a chapter sampler, not the entire novel, so i did not finish the entire book. (i read the first ~8 chapters) and even if i did, i probably would have dnf'd it because of the writing, but we'll get introduced to that later.

in this book, we meet jude, an introverted junior in high school. jude comes across <spoiler> a dice that gives him extreme luck in things, like in his stats class he rolls heads 57 times in a row, finds a paul mccartney signed poster in his parent's vinyl that they've owned for years, etc etc. </spoiler> and honestly, i like the story just fine. i think it's cute, and i find jude extremely relatable.

however, the book was like something that was written in a high school English class. i don't know whether this is because i've been reading more adult/older ya novels lately, but the writing was just too simplistic for me and was starting to bore me even though i really liked the story. and some things were also described really plainly to the point it was just not my kind of read.

also, i do understand that the book is for 12 years and up, but i read other books with this age range and i don't have the same issue with the writing.

these are solely my opinions. thanks again to NetGalley and Macmillan Publishing for the chance for an ARC of a novel.

This was a very fun little teaser. The premise wasn't for me, but the narrator and writing were so charming that I had a very good time anyway.

The fourth wall breaks were delightful, the cast of characters was warm and easy to distinguish (a feat, considering just how many there were), and the unreliable narrator was a great deal of fun.

I felt pretty bad for Maya -- Jude is so stuck in his head he can't even appreciate his hopeless crush popping around to his family's record store to try to befriend him! Keep going, Maya, I believe in you! Ari was super sweet as well, and I appreciated Pru and Ellie a great deal.

I also really enjoyed how good Jude was with people and kids. I'm always here for a sensitive, thoughtful, gentle protagonist. His interactions with Ellie were great.

You'll need more patience with self-deprecating, rejection-averse characters than I have, but if that's your jam, then definitely check out this one -- I don't think you'll regret it.

Just the right amount for a sampler. The protagonist’s support system of friends and family imbues the narrative with a comforting, familial ambiance. The add in of comic strips enriches the reading experience, offering a delightful layer of immersion.

Ok, this book was seriously cool and I got to LISTEN AND READ. And they were both really fun experiences.

So, we have this story from Jude's perspective, and he is seriously creative. I love living in his head. It's a little like Percy Jackson broke into a YA romcom. The way he randomly breaks the 4th wall is so good, I love it.

The best parts were possibly the D&D sections.
In the kindle copy, every time they play D&D it is in the form of a graphic novel. It's such a fun way to bring the game to life. And in the audio it has music and sound effects. It's so fun! The narrator also great at adding the gravitas to the situation.

The story felt really long. When I thought it was going to end, it still had half the book left. The second half was good, the length just felt daunting.

I think anyone familiar with my reviews knows I <i>love</i> Marissa Meyer stories and am far too excited to get my hands on just about anything that she writes. As per usual, unsurprisingly, this book was no different.

While I will freely admit that I have come to realize I do infinitely prefer Marissa Meyer’s fantasy work to her contemporary, I was thoroughly pleased to find that I enjoyed <i>With a Little Luck</i> as much as I did. It was a quick overall read and very reminiscent of stories like <i>Some Kind of Wonderful</i>, just with us more in the head of the unaware crushee.

It has, unfortunately, been so long since I read the companion novel <i>Instant Karma</i>, so I can’t quite determine which one I prefer. What I can say, however, is the vast majority of Jude’s story is quite adorable. He can be a little obtuse sometimes, but is throughout incredibly kind and cute.

I also absolutely loved the tiny little addition of “character-created” art that Meyer was able to include in Jude’s tale. Jude, as an artist, is writing a graphic novel throughout the entire book and Meyer teamed up with Chuck Gonzales to add in that little bit of story for her character. It was so much fun to see the neediness of Jude portrayed in multiple different ways that we could actually perceive instead of simply visualizing for ourselves.

This is definitely a fun read and one I’m so glad I was able to read a little early!

This was a fun little sampler. I love the comics, and that's why I wanted to grab this. I wanted to see the art style and how polished they were. It ties in well with Jude's hobbies, and add a fun dimension to the story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan for a copy of this book to review. All opinions are my own.

This is a great sampler! I was intrigued by the story immediately and am already shipping Jude and Ari. I can't wait until this book is released so I can read the rest! I've loved all of Marissa Meyer's books and am certain I'll love this too.

I appreciate this sampler, because it helped me to identify quickly that this book is not for me. That's not to say it's not a good book, only that the tone and writing style don't align with my preferences.

The tone is very conversational and quirky, which feels appropriate for YA. The narrator and main point of view character even refers to "breaking the fourth wall" when he addresses the reader directly. Again, there's nothing objectively wrong with that, it's just not something that I enjoy.

That said, I think this is a good choice for readers who enjoy a conversational tone and whimsical story with quirky and loveable characters.

Perfect sample! This sample will definitely get readers hooked and have them wanting more!

Thank you netgalley and to the publisher for allowing me to review this!

I recently read the first book of this series and was ecstatic to find that another would be coming out soon! This sampler is only making me more excited for the book and I can’t wait!

A fine preview that will make teen/YA romance lovers wait impatiently for the full book!

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the ARC.

Opinions are mine.

The perfect sample to get into the story and get hooked! This is my first Marissa Meyer book in about a decade but in so excited to get back into her writing!

This was fun! I can't wait to read the whole thing and see how the magic/luck comes into play later on. At first I was a little skeptical about it, but I think with her background in writing fantasy and magic, Meyer should be able to pull it off!

Honestly… I was super excited for this one. As soon as the announcement was out I was like yep okay boutta get this. Consider it snatched.. After reading this chapter sampler I’m a little bummed. Is it middle grade? It must be. The fourth wall break, the talking to the audience, it’s also so very cheesy. This could have been done so much better. I was SO EXCITED about this release but this just did not hit like I thought it was going to. Am I still going to read it? Maybe if my library gets it, but I don’t plan on purchasing it. I hope the rest of the book is good. I wish I had gotten the full one to review, but from what I saw from this brief sampler it’s not something I am interested in purchasing

With a Little Luck is her latest novel coming out this February! Unfortunately thanks to my approval rating I was denied the full novel. The sample though was open to everyone so I figured that was better than nothing. The main character Jude is kinda of a nerd but in my opinion a cool dude. He takes care of his siblings, helps his parents run their record shop, and plans campaigns for his and his bud's D&D nights. One day someone leaves a 20-sided die on the counter at the record store and Jude decides from there that he is going to keep it. Suddenly weird but good things start to happen regularly. Has his life changed for the better permanently? Or is he in for a rude surprise? Unfortunately, I don’t know cause the sample didn’t get to that point. Unless I can get a copy some other way I am going to have to wait till February 13th, 2024 to buy it for myself. Maybe someone from the publishing company will see this and cut me a break! Either way, I just wanted to share it because I have loved Miss Meyer ever since Cinder came out! When I do get I promise a full review!

Cute chapter. Makes me want to read more. Hard to do a full review on just one chapter, but its everything youd expect from Marissa Meyer

I wish that I were able to read beyond this sample. I got pulled into the mystery of Jude’s good luck and its connection to the twenty sided dice. The variety of styles, such as breaking the fourth wall and the graphic novel style pages, made this story interesting and very different from other books I have read. Now I wonder where the plot is going. Will Jude eventually lose his streak of luck? Will he face consequences for having that good luck? Will his life become like one of his D&D campaigns? Will he learn that easily gained wishes are not as enduring as the love of family and friends? There are many possibilities for the direction of this novel, but the obvious must be the end of his luck. After that Jude must struggle along with his friends to overcome that end and learn lessons along the way.
I look forward to reading the final version of With a Little Luck.

This chapter sampler proved to me that this will be an auto-buy when it releases next year! I already love Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles, and this cute book will be so fun to read next year!

Amazing!! I got a copy of the full book so I'll give my full review there, ht I love everything by Marissa Meyer that I've read so you can bet this one is great too!