I’ve enjoyed Willingham’s books in the past and will continue to pick her books up, but the premise of this one wasn’t my favourite. She did a great job of bringing the reader back to the days of being on the cusp of adulthood, trying to fit in and figure out who you are. It was a slow burn to the end, a lot of the internal dialogue of the main character felt repetitive to me and I wasn’t very invested by the time all was revealed.
Karissa Vacker did an excellent job narrating and was a major reason I continued with the story.
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the audio copy through NetGalley in exchange for a review!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance reader audio edition of this book. I am a huge fan of the narrator for this book and other WIllingham books. Karissa Vacker always does a great job. Normally I very much enjoy Stacy Willingham's book, but this one just wasn't up to her usual standards. The story takes too long to develop and the character development is not as good as her other books. 3 stars

3.5
I will read whatever Willingham writes next. But this book was not my favorite. This slow burn college focused read had me wanting more.

The twists were interesting, but almost predictable. Still the story line and how it came together was great to see. I love her style and her ability to tell the story even in this new way.

A slower burn. This is a well-written take of female friendship and betrayal that will hit home for female readers. A little tough to remember being this age.... the author is masterful with "girl feelings" and issues of who to trust. A worthy slow-burn, satisfying listen that was also very well-narrated.

I have enjoyed Stacy Willingham's novels in the past, but this one seemed to fall a little flat for me. Told in multiple timelines, I felt that it jumped around a bit too much. It was an extremely slow burn for me and I found it did not keep my attention as much as I hoped it would. I felt that this should be more geared towards YA, as it focuses of college sophomores. The actions of the characters embody this age range and were aggravating, unrealistic, and too coincidental. I will give this author another chance as I enjoyed her other books.

The narrator, Karissa Vacker, did a wonderful job with this book. I felt like it was being told by a college sophomore. She voices all the characters well, making it easy to tell who is speaking. I will always listen to an audiobook narrated by Karissa Vacker.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced listening copy of this book.

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this one - on one hand, I really enjoyed the characters and thought they were all compelling and well developed. However, on the other hand, I just struggled to connect to any of them. I felt like they were relatable in a lot of ways, but I didn't feel like we were getting to know any of them intimately. I almost felt like I was watching this story develop from afar instead of being a part of it. I did like the ending and thought it answered most of my questions but did see some of it coming. Overall, I thought this was pretty well done but wasn't one that will still with me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

TW: Language, drinking, death of friend, classism

*****SPOILERS*****
About the book: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.
Release Date: January 16th, 2024
Genre: Thriller
Pages: 386
Rating: ⭐

What I Liked:
1. Writing is descriptive

What I Didn't Like:
1. Boring
2. Characters found in any other basic thriller

Overall Thoughts:
Cool another book that makes out like making friends with other girls is just as easy as reaching for a banana in the same basket.

It's so difficult to like Margot when she pretty much mentions that her furniture is prefect for her parents mansion but not this new place and then to her mentioning not wanting to go to a party with public school kids.

60 pages into this book and I'm already tired of hearing about Eliza.

Honestly she says that Trevor being around is like him bringing Eliza to college but she lives in the ghost of her because she's always bring her up. Every sentence is Eliza this - Eliza that. What about Margot? Or anyone else...

Final Thoughts:
I dnfed at page 100. I was bored and nothing happened. I didn't care for these typical college people. Hearing about how hot someone was to drinking and drugs reminded me how much I hate being around people that do this stuff. No thanks.

This book is great if you like reading about basic one dimensional rich characters.

Thanks to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for the ebook & Macmillan Audio for the audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Stacy Willingham is one of my favorite thriller writers. When this books was announced I posted a huge excited post about it. So, when I started it and then had to restart it, and restart it, AND RESTART it to say I was disappointed would be a huge understatement. I just could NOT get into it. It draaaggggggged. But, because I love Stacy I went against my norm and continued. I fully believe in the DNF, but have faith in Stacy. It did pick up in the last 25-30% but really you shouldn’t have to wait that long for good content.
One thing that did keep me going here was the fact that Karissa Vacker was the narrator. I adore her and would honestly listen to her read anything but she did add something to this one, even the draggy parts.
2.5 rounded down.

Slow Burn - dark academia- psychological thriller-female friendship, adoration, obsession - unreliable narrator - long bonfire nights - a visit to an uninhabited island - frat boys next door ...
This book is captivating in it's own way, short chapters kept me engaged while the single
POV was balanced with flashbacks to different times.
The main character Margot has to cope with her best friend Eliza dying during their senior year (was it an accident ?) instead of deferring like her parents want her to she starts college first as dorm life than moving in with loose acquaintances but as soon as Margot comes out of her shell again things pick up around her as well, people die and people disappear ... what is going on and does it all relate to her ?
This was entertaining and quick - I loved the narration by Karissa Vacker and highly recommend listening to the audio!

Willingham is clearly a talented writer and it shines through in this one. I really enjoyed all of the Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde references and how the author used them to compare female friendships. Also, I really enjoyed the dark academia aspect and the unexpected twists. Readers and fans of her prior works, will also enjoy Only If You’re Lucky!

Wow! This is the first book I have read by Stacy Willingham and certainly not the last! "Only If You're Lucky" was an unstoppable read! The twists and turns truly left me shocked throughout the book. This is a book that you will want to re-read to see if you miss any clues along the way. One of the top books I've read.

I am quite upset with myself and havign to write this review because the author was such a knock out author for me but this novel isnt along the same lines as her usual work. The characters in this are in college but it feels even more YA then that. This is a slow book that lasts until the very end where the big reveal occurs which is interesting but not jaw dropping.

the story is about Margot whos best friend Eliza (who she was obsessed with) died , and then meets Lucy and immediatly moves in with her (and becomes obsessed with)

the story feels like it was told to somene who doesnt belong, who tries hard to belong and comes off awwkard.

but because the burn is so slow you tend to miss the bread crumbs that help you piece together the mystery (or at least i did) so overall i feel very underwhelmed)

<i>Only If You're Lucky</i> was a refershing change to some of the books I have been reading lately. It is not your typical college roommate story. Margot has a very shut-in experience to her freshamn year at college. Once she meets Lucy and decides to live off campus with her for her sophomore year, her life turns a complete 180. From grabbing her meals at the cafeteria to-go and eat in her room to frat parties and tons of new friends. But something isn't right. Someone from her past shows up. Someone who brings back memories of her lifelong best friend and her untimely death. And then there's a murder and a roommate who goes missing...

Even though this is a twisty thriller, I found it very refreshing for the genre that it is. The writing style was just as it should be.

The story of friendship, teen angst, jealousy, college life, family secrets, plot twists… a little bit of everything! A great thriller that you will not be able to guess.

I enjoyed the narration while listening to the audio version, only one narrator. Because it was only one narrator I found it slightly hard to follow in certain sections. Once I got comfortable with the characters it became easy to follow.

I’ll definitely read more from this author.

Thank you netgalley for allowing me to listen to this audio book for a fair & honest review.

was lucky enough to receive both the E-ARC and Audiobook.to this book. I was excited because I had never read anything by this author. So I started the ebook and well it was just not working for me. I switched to the audiobook and sadly that didn't capture my attention. I just couldn't connect with the characters the storyline etc. So sadly I DNFed this book. I'm rating the book 3 stars because while it wasn't the book for me it might be the perfect book for someone else.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the E-ARC. And to Macmillan Audio for the ALC

All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

“Wow.” That’s the thought in my head when I finished this book. This is my third Stacy Willingham read and also my third 5 star for her. I absolutely love her writing and her mind. This story is a mystery, crime, psychological thriller, drama with chaos all around. It flowed perfectly and definitely kept my attention the entire time. Willingham is a great story teller and I have never been accurate in my “guess” (haha!).
I listened to the audiobook version of “Only If You’re Lucky,” read by Karissa Vacker, who always does an excellent job narrating.
Thank you to Stacy Willingham, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC edition of this book.

US pub date: 1/16/24
Genre: thriller, dark academia
Quick summary: The death of her BFF Eliza kept Lucy from enjoying her freshman year of college - but then the mysterious Margot offers her friendship and an off-campus apartment. It's all fun and games until the frat boy next door gets murdered...

If Karissa Vacker narrates a thriller audiobook, I will listen to it. I went into this one excited for dark academia-set drama, and Willingham delivered! The twists were over the top but super entertaining, making it a really fun listen. I ended up listening to the whole book in one day, and I loved all the surprises!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for providing an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

The ending definitely saved this one, but it got a little snoozefest worthy in the middle. I would’ve liked more action. I did enjoy the narration

I originally started the audio version of this book—while there was nothing wrong with the narrator or anything like that the story just wasn’t jiving with me via audio (happens if I can’t get the specific speed setting I need) so I bought a physical copy. Once I got the physical copy and started reading the story hit so much better for me. I picked it up and I just craved more—something that happens whenever I have a Stacy Willingham book in my hands.

Margot and the people around her’s stories were cleverly plotted, intriguing, and while I can usually guess the twists in thrillers—many of the ones in this one were a surprise for me.

I love Willingham’s work and eagerly await the next book she releases!

The plot: Nothing really happens until the ending, which had a bit of unexpected drama, and the atmosphere was a huge plus--both upped my rating. The author tries to do that intense-bordering-on-toxic female friendship thing, The characters fell flat, but the ending made up for it with the unexpected twists.