This was basically if an American Girl story got the Yellowstone treatment

It’s gets into a rut by relying on declaratory statements, but works best in the gambling halls and on the trails.
When Haidie has too much time to sink into her thoughts, the book can become more if a repetitive rehash of the same thought loop, which makes sense for a kid but doesn’t lend itself to adult read.
I think that if this is marketed as a YA book it will get to the desired audience, especially for all the teens who grew up reading the “Dear America” books.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC

So very happy to have a new Sandra Dallas book to read. I just recently read "Little Souls" and it was also a great read. But this one is a true western which I loved. The story is about Haidie Richards and her brother going west to find their father and the adventures they encounter along the way.
I love how Haidie learns the ways of the west and even learns to handle mules and greedy men. :) The tough lady should be the subtitle. She is a pickle that you will enjoy a lot!

I never thought I’d finish reading a novel about liars.

But Sandra Dallas spins an intriguing tale set in 1863 Illinois.

In Tough Luck, Haidie is a professional liar at only fourteen years of age. Fact is, she comes from a line of liars and cheaters. After her mother dies, her brother sells the family farm, sending Haidie and her younger brother to an orphanage. Determined to stay with her brother, Haidie continues the lies until they eventually escape.

Only to connect with more liars who are willing to help her get to Colorado to find her father.

The only truly "good" people, still lie to help Haidie, and see nothing wrong with doing so.

Gambling, prostitution, fake marriages, extra-marital affairs, cross-dressing, polygamy, deception, domestic abuse, violence, theft, and murder fill the pages as Haidie and Boots (her brother) travel from Illinois to Colorado.

I suppose the redeeming factor in the entire narrative is that Haidie and her friends deceive the ultimate deceiver, winning back something that belongs to her family.

And yup. They all lie to get what they want.

And they all do get what they want in the end.

Somehow, that just seems wrong.

I prefer stories that delineate good and evil. This one did not.

The narrative is strong, however, pulling readers into Haidie’s world and the descriptions give readers an idea of everything Haidie is experiencing. These are the only reasons I kept reading.

If you enjoy western stories that are gritty, you may like Tough Luck. But if you prefer stories that are wholesome and clean with strong morals, pass this one by.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

When their mother dies, their selfish father gives the entire farm to the gambler older brother and packs Haidie and her little brother, Boots, off to a miserable orphanage. But Haidie is tenacious and resourceful, and soon she and Boots are off on an adventure across the old west. A gritty, thrilling, feel-good story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin's Press

Another great adventure book by Sandra Dallas. This one is set in the Colorado during the gold rush of the 1860s.

Loved getting to know Haddie, Boots and especially Jake.

I think YA would love this story as the main focus is on the young people and is told from their perspective.

Highly recommend.

Expected publication April 29, 2025.

Tough Luck by Sandra Dallas. Enjoyed the perilous journey westward with Haidie and Boots very much. The narrative was filled with vivid descriptive details of everyday life during the late 1800s and of the landscape, very colorful and interesting characters, harrowing events and humor. And the "Tough Luck" ending, great! Was picturing all the “old time” westerns heroes throughout; John Wayne, Sam Elliot and for some reason Roddy McDowell as Corney. Highly recommended.
Thank you to Sandra Dallas, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

“Filled with vivid period detail, colorful characters, and the irreverent voice of our scrappy heroine, Tough Luck celebrates both the tenacity of youth and the persistence of the heart in the great American West.”

Scrappy is definitely a word that describes Haidie well! After her mother died, her older brother has sold the family farm and put her and her brother Boots into an orphanage. They father left 4 years ago for Colorado. Haidie is sure he has hit it big and will send for them. After having enough of the orphanage, she decides they will go find him. She and Boots break out and head west. Along the way, she learns big life lessons and meets an eclectic group of characters. The journey is hard but they make it to Colorado. I went give away anything after that! This story is detailed and heart warming!

The author gave a vivid description of the Wild West in the 1800’s with well drawn characters and the hardships they endured. Unfortunately I had a hard time connecting with the story. I always reading Sandra Dallas but this book just wasn’t for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Publishers for an advanced ebook.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Tough Luck
by Sandra Dalla
Pub Date Apr 29 2025
St. Martin's Press
General Fiction (Adult) | Historical Fiction | Women's Fiction
Five star read for me!
Thank you to NetGalley and a BIG THANK YOU to St. Martin's Press for reaching out to me to be one of the early readers for this amazing book!
I loved every aspect of this story!
Sandra Dallas does it again! Another gem by this author that will stay with this reader for quite some time! The author knows how to write and research historical fiction that will keep the reader captivated until the end of the story. (Just a little side note: I read the acknowledgments and I am so glad the author decided to write another book after Where Coyotes Howl and I and I am sure many others hope she continues to write these amazing stories)!
What Haidie and her little brother Boots had to endure after losing their mother allowed for personal growth and amazing character development. Physical description and speech fit each character, easy to envision and see each character as the writer described.
Loved the personal growth of all the characters in this story.
Highly recommend!
The cover art also a five star. Love it!

The Richards family is barely making it on their farm when Ma dies. Since Pa went out West in search of a gold mine two years earlier and has never returned, big brother Cheet (that name IS a bit too on-the-nose) sells the farm and dumps his younger brother and sister in an orphanage so he can gamble away all their money. Fourteen-year-old Haidie and eight-year-old Boots escape from the orphanage and head out West in search of their father. Unlike everyone else, they believe he is still alive and waiting for them to join him. Along the way they have many adventures and meet a wild collection of characters.

Some readers have compared Tough Luck to True Grit because the main character is a smart four-teen-year-old who loves her father and makse an unconventional journey in the Old West, but I disagree. Unlike the morally rigid Mattie Ross, Haidie is an accomplished liar from what Mattie would have described as a trashy family and she has no problem with drinking, gambling, or prostitution as long as the people engaged in them are kind. Also, the Charles Portis novel has a dark center, but Sandra Dallas takes a consistently jocular tone and soft-pedals any actual tragedies. Tough Luck is more like Robert Lewis Taylor's The Travels of Jamie McPheeters.

One issue I did have with this novel is that the author writes about Roman Catholicism in a way that seems to indicate profound ingnorance. While it is likely that Haidie would lack knowledge of the Church, I found it ridiculous that the matron of a Catholic orphanage (who, in the 19th century, would NOT have been a lay person as is the case here) would be portrayed as so clueless that she believed Cheet could be ordained as a priest a few weeks after supposedly entering a seminary or that she would not bother to check his story. (The Catholic Church keeps records and the road to ordination takes years of study and formation.) Also, the idea that Teresa, who had a baby out of wedlock, would be forced to become a nun, is equally absurd. Women were locked up in convents in the Middle Ages and girls declared "incorrigible" for their sexual experiences were sometimes institutionalized even in the 20th century, but by the time of this novel, a vocation was a serious thing and postulent nuns had to spend several years proving themselves before being allowed to take the veil. The whole business of Teresa's "marriage" was like a bad joke and I am surprised that an author like Sandra Dallas, who has written respectfully about Mormons, would do this. Even though the story is told from the perspective of an unsophisticated girl, the events of that story should not depend on her lack of knowledge.

That said, I enjoyed Tough Luck. Haidie is a brave, spirited, and compassionate heroine and her adventures are entertaining. This novel lacked the depth and seriousness of Dallas's True Sisters or Westering Women, but it was a fun read.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Tough Luck by Sandra Dallas. It was so well written that I found myself completely engrossed in the story, forgetting everything about my day-to-day life. I highly recommend Tough Luck, you will not be disappointed.

Haidie and Boots are sent to the orphanage after their Ma dies. Pa is still out west looking for his gold mine and their brother isn't interested in raising his two younger siblings. Haidie knows she cannot stay in the orphanage with Boots. She has her plan to runaway and head out west to find Pa. Haidie disguises herself as a boy as her and Boots make there way across the county, meeting some of the nicest people on the Earth and some of the scariest.
Sandra Dallas brings the American West alive in Tough Luck. Dallas is a one of a kind story-teller and uses her words to awaken places you have never been. I love to read Dallas's work and if you have never experienced it, one should. The only negative I have with Tough Luck is the length of the chapters. I love to sneak in a read whenever I can. When chapters are so long, it is hard to find a good place to pause. I then have to re-read to remember where I was. This would not keep me from reading this, it is just an inconvenience. The writing is beautiful, the storyline is so good, and the characters stay with you long after the story is over. I would definitely like to see where Haidie and Boots went next. Special thanks to NetGalley, Sandra Dallas, and St. Martin's Press for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest opinion. 4 stars for me.

This is my third Sandra Dallas novel and it didn't disappoint. This was a true western and had all of the rough and tough adventure that kept a fast pace. Hadie, Boots and Chett were barely surviving on their farm when their mother died and Chett sold the farm. He cheats his siblings out of the money and drops them off at the nearest orphanage. Determined to get away Haidie and Boots set off to find their father who went west to find his fortune in gold. With only a couple of letters from their father, they use their intelligence, strong will, and hope to lead the search. Disguised as a boy Haidie makes herself useful and creates a community with the most unlikely protectors. She supports and is supported and I cheered for the whole group. It is an other Little House on the Prairies for adults and recommend it to anyone looking for a fun adventure.

You can never go wrong with Sandra Dallas. Sandra is one of my favorite authors. Tough Luck is a story that engages you with its characters and its locations. I think this book would also qualify for Young Adults. Our library with be putting it on the shelf.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of Tough Luck by Sandra Dallas

I really enjoyed this novel. The author did a great job using the language and mannerisms of the times. She developed great characters and used lots of descriptions.
I liked the journey across country so that Haidie and Boots could try to find their father. I liked the obstacles they encountered and the learning experiences they had. So many different characters and a very realistic experience.
Great book, I love Sandra Dallas

In her new book, Tough Luck, Sandra Dallas does an excellent job of giving a strong variation on the move westward. Haidie, the 14-year-old main character and her younger brother, Boots, are left at an orphanage after her mother dies. Cheet her older brother sells the family farm and keeps most of the money with plans to become a gambler. Their father has been absent for years. Haidie decides to escape when she and her brother are treated like slave labor at the orphanage. With the help of one of the younger nuns, who is also there against her will, they make their escape. Haidie and her brother with a lot of help, navigate their way through the journey west to look for their father in Colorado. The book has a large cast of interesting characters, some good, some wicked. The plot has many twists. The story is sometimes funny and sometimes heartbreaking, and often suspenseful. This is a coming-of-age story for several of the characters. There are elements reminiscent of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. Strongly recommended for lovers of adventure books. Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for an early look at this wonderful book.

The story is about a family - The father leaves the family to strike it rich in the gold rush. Not longer after he leaves and the mother passes away leaving an adult son and a 14 year old girl Haidie and her younger brother Boots. The adult son sells the farm and places Haidie and Boots in an orphanage. They escape the orphanage to find their father who they believe must have found gold in Colorado. Haidie decides to portray herself a boy in order to find someone who is willing to take them to Colorado. They manage to find a wagon train that will take them. Along the way meet several fellow travelers - some good, some bad. The characters are very well written. Haidie is very smart and resourceful. I found the story to be interesting because of the wagon train journey. I think this book would also be enjoyed by young adult readers. I will definitely read other books by this author.
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read and ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed TOUGH LUCK. I was never a big fan of the western genre, but this book has opened my eyes and I may need to read more of these stories now.

This story is told in the voice of Haidie, a young girl who lost her mother and was abandoned by her father. After escaping an orphanage, Haidie and her younger brother, Boots, join a wagon train in search of their father. In their travels they encounter many trials and tribulations, but they also meet some amazing people who care for them and save them from starvation and other dangers on the trail.

This book is filled with humor, it has a captivating cast of characters and it even has the perfect ending. I highly recommend it and give it the 5 stars it deserves. Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.

For decades. I have been reading Sandra Dallas. She is a master storyteller and this one did not disappoint. Loved the setting and the way all the characters were written. Another beautiful book.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Tough Luck by Sandra Dallas was such an enjoyable story. I am a fan of books about the Oregon trail or early American settlements in the west. Anything that can take us back to those days where people were tough, resilient and paved their own way. There is so much that I could say about Tough Luck, but I don't like to give away plots. I figure you can read the synopsis to get the gist of the storyline. So the characters, the scenery description, and the emotions felt by the characters are what draws me into a book. Needless to say, all were top notch in Tough Luck. Every character including Haidie and Boots and all of those that played a part in their journey to the West were unforgettable. Sandra Dallas does such a beautiful description of scenery that you feel like you are looking at a painting or watching something on a movie screen. She makes it extremely easy to visualize what the characters are seeing. The way the characters are tied together keep the story flowing. Someone who may seem insignificant in the larger picture can actually play a huge role in the survival of Haidie and Boots. Dallas has always written stories that stay with you for days after you finish reading. I find myself having to delve into other genres after reading one of her books. I just have to let the stories sit and then I'm ready for her next book. Tough luck is one of my favorite Sandra Dallas books so far! I can't wait to read what Dallas comes up with next! I voluntarily received a copy of this book from netgalley.