After buying a lottery ticket, Sybil decides to celebrate what she is hoping new luck by enjoying a donut. Lucky for her, Kiran, the man behind the counter of the donut shop, looks good enough to eat. A little flirting leads to a hot encounter between the two, and Sybil accidentally leaves the lottery ticket behind. The ticket turns out to be a winner and a viral video that Kiran posts to find Sybil so that he can return the winning lottery ticket leads to them fake dating.

This book was lots of fun! The themes of luck and wishes was so whimsical. I loved the move "It Could Happen to You" and this one reminded me of it. Kiran didn't have to return the winning ticket to Sybil, but he was too much of a good man with integrity to take advantage of the situation. Obviously, he also had other motives with trying to find her.

I have to be honest, I was a little wary of Sybil at first. She was everything that I am not - a chaotic mess who doesn't make the best decisions. But seeing Sybil through Kiran's eyes made me see the beauty in her mess. She was a free spirit who knew how to have a good time. Kiran, being very much opposite in personality from Sybil, learned to relax and have fun from her. They were like yin and yang, and I love that kind of pairing!

Although they have a hot tryst early in the book, much of the rest of the book is a slow burn. I like this kind of set up, where I knew that the sexual chemistry was there and it grew even more as they got to know each other.

Pick this one up for an enjoyable fake dating romance between two strangers!

Steam level: 🔥🔥🔥
⚠️: heart attack, mention of neglect & addiction

Sybil is a lucky person who's having a bit of a rough patch. After a no-show date, Sybil decides to buy a donut and a lottery ticket because who needs men when you have money and something sweet, right?! The donut shop is where she meets Kiernan, with whom she has an instant connection. Sybil leaves the lottery ticket at the donut shop, not thinking anything of it, but it's a winning ticket. Kiernan doesn't feel right about keeping the ticket, so he makes a video trying to find her. The video goes viral, and tons of people go to the donut shop, wanting to see if the woman found Kiernan. Because Kiernan needs the extra press for the shop, he and Sybil decide to fake date for a while.
This was super cute! I really liked how Kiernan was so accepting of Sybil and her spontaneity. Was Sybil a little bit of a mess? Sure. But that really evened out how buttoned up Kiernan was. This was a great fake dating book that I think everyone should check out!
Just our Luck releases 03/25/25

I am DNF'ing this one. I think that this will be my last book by Denise Williams. I have loved all of her books so for with the exception of her previous novel Technically Yours. This book was not hitting the mark for me. I was bored by everything that was going on and I believe that is because the characters had no depth to them.

Just Our Luck by Denise Williams is a delightful blend of sweetness and heat, much like the perfect donut! I found myself captivated by the characters of Kieran and Sybil, and their intense chemistry and genuine affection as they embarked on their fake dating escapade. Denise Williams has a talent for crafting compelling stories, and I eagerly anticipate reading more of her work in the future.

Thanks so much to Berkley Pub for the free book! #BerkleyPartner

This is my first time reading Denise Williams, and I am sad to say this was a major miss for me. Sybil is one of the most unlikable FMCs I've read in a very long time, and I was hoping to relate to her. We're both Black, plus-sized, and the youngest sibling who is underestimated and invalidated by family members. However, Sybil was impulsive, selfish (chronically late, which is selfish), and extremely crude. I'm not a saint and I swear quite a bit, but Sybil's sense of humor very much gave "Deadpool is my favorite movie of all time." in that it was very immature, poorly-timed, and seemed to serve as a wall she erected between herself and others to keep them from getting to know her particularly well. She was also a little bit of a bum and never took accountability for how all of these things made her experience the consequences of her actions, instead falling into a "womp, womp, I guess my family is right and I AM a loser" headspace that got old very quickly. I was thrown off by the sudden assertion that her behavior was explained by a diagnosis at the end of the novel; it felt very clunky. I'm also noticing a trend where Black characters are being written in a way that Blackness doesn't impact their day-to-day, and I'm not saying Sybil needed to get pulled over by the cops, but I'm also not sure why Black characters are suddenly being written this way.

Kieran was a mean stick in the mud with a stick up his butt who stressed every moment of every single day and spoke to Sybil absolutely crazy at times. I didn't find him likable, believable as a love interest, or supportive of Sybil in any way. He was very much just floundering around his life and blaming everyone and his circumstances for why he couldn't return to medical school, but he ultimately didn't seem like he ever wanted to take that path seriously in the first place. His grandfather and the grandfather's best friend were my favorite characters in this story, hands-down!

The overall narrative wasn't super compelling. The lottery aspect was decentered then recentered at very odd moments, the donut shop was a very uninteresting background to most of the scenes, and the side characters seemed to only exist to give the narrative something to hold onto. None of the characters are described particularly well in a way that makes it easy to imagine what they look like or what behaviors are common for them to display, so I overall felt quite disconnected from literally all of the characters as well. Sybil's mother was cruel but it's presented as her being caring; since she was underdeveloped she felt very sinister at times and I ended up feeling anxious whenever she was in a scene.

This just wasn't for me. While some of the moments were cute and the overall writing in terms grammar, syntax, etc. is digestible and accessible, I didn't care for the writing style, the characters, or the plot. Also, as a personal aside, I *really* want authors to stop mentioning Elon Musk/Tesla and Taylor Swift in their books omg.

2.5 ⭐️s
2 🌶️
🚨 Pub Date: 3/25/25

In this romance novel, Sybil is known for being bubbly and friendly, but also a little bit accident prone and likely to cause chaos. Kieran, an aspiring doctor who put medical school on hold to take over his ill grandfather’s donut shop, is highly reliable but lacks people skills. After the two briefly meet and sparks fly, Sybil accidentally leaves her lottery ticket in the donut shop. Kieran gets her ticket back to her through a viral video search effort, and the two fake date so Sybil can appear stable while Kieran pays off medical bills.

While I’m used to reading romance novels with all types of unlikely premises, someone winning the lottery seems unlikely. Regardless, I went with it. The book was fun, although the ending involved a bit of overstepping on the part of one of the characters.

super cute rom-com!! if you can get past the unrealistic aspect of winning the lottery (which I didn't think was necessary for the story), then you will enjoy it.
I loved the intentionality of FMC having ADHD, but I feel like it was too understated and glossed over a bit in the end.

This unfortunately was a pretty early dnf from me. I tried to get into it on a few different occasions but getting through chapter 1 was hard.

We are the lucky ones with this treat from Denise Williams.

Sybil Sweet has always considered herself pretty lucky, except where it comes to men. After a night out drinking with friends, she impulsively picks up a lottery ticket for the $349M jackpot. She is hoping millions of dollars and maybe a yummy donut can help her give up on men, so Joe's Donuts is her next stop. And just when she is given up on men, and ends up flirting and getting naughty with the hot, donut guy. A mix- up sends her dashing off, leaving her lottery ticket behind.

Kiran Anderson finds the winning ticket on his desk the next day. Everyone is suggesting Kiran claim the winnings since that would solve the problem of the failing business, his grandfather's medical bills and Kiran's medical school tuition. But Kiran won't even discuss keeping someone else's winning ticket. He knows where it came from but he only knows the woman with the great smile is called Sybil so he takes to social media to find her--and his story goes viral. It seems everyone in town is suddenly showing up for donuts and maybe to be there when the missing Sybil shows up to claim her ticket. They want a view of the woman with the "amazing smile."

Sybil finally see the video and shows up at Joe's.   She offers Kiran some of the winnings like a finder's fee but he refuses, even though his grandfather's shop desperately needs money to stay open. In light of the crowd at the shop and the thousands of likes and comments on the video showing everyone's investment in Sybil and Kiran, Sybil suggests that they pretend a romance and maybe the publicity will provide the necessary funds to keep Joe's Donuts in business.

Everyone is interested in Sybil and Kiran and donuts are flying out the door.   But once the bills are covered and his grandfather's health is improving, will Kiran return to medical school or give up on his dream to be with his dream girl?

THOUGHTS:
This definitely starts off as a grumpy/sunshine story, even if it isn't intentional. Kiran is very uptight. Maybe it is the stress of having to take off from medical school to take care of his sick grandfather and his failing business but it seems that Kiran is always just a bit uptight.

This is important because I was very sad for Sybil for the first quarter of this story. She is so sweet and she gets a lot of derogatory comments from her mom because she doesn't seem to be able to hold down a job. Sybil tries working at restaurants, fast food, temp jobs but she often gets fired right when she is about to find her stride. Her mom is often comparing her to her Dentist sister with her beloved fiancé. Sybil loves them both (they are nice people) but her mom is constantly telling stories of Sybil's failings.  While Kiran and Sybil start the story with chemistry, once they begin to fake date, Kiran is so uptight about the lying.  This leads to him snapping a lot at Sybil and like her mom, constantly pointing out her flaws, making Sybil very sad because she likes Kiran.

Thankfully, it doesn't take long before Kiran realizes that when he gets stressed and snaps at Sybil, her smile that he loves so much dims immediately. He also realizes that spending time with Sybil brings a sunshine has been missing from his life for too long. Yay, because I was getting ready to throat-punch him.   Kiran is a really nice guy and we like him but watching him treat Sybil badly and making her upset was really, really bugging me.  I guess the problem is that Sybil is like a Labrador Retriever. She is a generally happy person with such a positive attitude.  She always wants to help and jumps right in but doesn't see the destruction she is causing while she plows ahead with her crazy ideas.  I just wanted to give her a hug.  

Denise Williams also gives us some great secondary characters who I hope will show up again in future stories.

I really try to not DNF a book but I had to do it. The story just wasn't holding my interest, and I couldn't connect with the characters at all. I kept saying to myself "wtf is going on". This one just wasn't it for me and I wanted to like it so bad.

Just Our Luck by Denise Williams
Rating: 3 stars
Steam: 1 chili
Pub date: 3/25

Thank you so much to Berkley Romance for my free copy!

Just Our Luck has everything you’d want in a fun rom-com—fake dating, a winning lottery ticket, and a donut shop meet-cute. But while the setup was great, the story didn’t work for me.

Sybil is kind of a mess—she jumps from job to job, relationship to relationship, and has no real plan. Kieran, on the other hand, is all about responsibility, trying to save his struggling family bakery. One night, Sybil buys a lottery ticket, shares some flirty banter (and more) with Kieran, then leaves–accidentally leaving behind her winning ticket. When Kieran tries to return it, the internet turns it into a romantic gesture, and suddenly, they’re fake dating for the sake of the bakery and Sybil’s overbearing family.

I loved the concept—fake dating always brings fun moments, and the side characters were hilarious. But Sybil frustrated me; she kept making the same mistakes, and her character growth felt lacking. The romance was cute, but I wanted more emotional depth.

Overall, Just Our Luck is a light, easy read with a fun premise. If you love fake dating, opposites attract, and fun setups, it’s worth checking out!

Thank you Berkley Romance for sending a copy of “Just Our Luck” my way!

It breaks my heart to say this, but I have mixed feelings about this one. I was fully captivated by this book as the story went on. Sybil was a hoot and extremely relatable, and Kieran was her perfect grumpy match. The chemistry was to die for and started out with a bang (somewhat literally)! Even the supporting characters were full of life and complimented the couple in every way. Not to mention the excellent BIPOC and ADHD representation!

And then— we got to the last 26 pages. Yes, I counted.

I don’t want to spoil the ending for those who want to read this one, but FOR ME, this final act was too short of a wrap up for what happened. It also felt very out of character for both Sybil and Kieran, almost as if it was only added to include a final conflict.

If those last few chapters didn’t happen and we just skipped to the epilogue, this book would be a full five stars for me. But, unfortunately, they exist, so I have to bump my review down to three stars.

If you’re fine with endings that come completely out of left field, you should still read this one! Again, it’s only the last 10% that this happens, so you could just be like me and decide to pretend it never happened.

Thanks to @berkleypub and @berkleyromance for the gifted e-ARC.

This was my first Denise Williams novel and I can definitely say it won’t be my last!

Right from the start I was swept up in Sybil’s chaotic energy. She reminded me of friends I have with ADHD. Chronically late, but full of amazing ideas and the energy to make them happen and with big hearts for everyone around them.

I thought her opposites attract relationship with Kieran was perfect. She craved his steady calm and he loved her big personality. The chemistry and spice between them was hot! I loved how understanding he was of her and how he stuck up for her. And how she brought him out of his shell.

The plot was great. I love fake dating. All that forced proximity! And the donut shop was a really fun setting. It definitely made me hungry! I was actually really surprised by the ending, but felt it really wrapped up the story well.

This is a fun, exciting, delicious romance. Enjoy it with a box of donuts from your favorite local shop!

Thanks to Berkley for an advanced copy of Just Our Luck by Denise Williams.

This sounded cute, but unfortunately, this wasn't the book for me.

Sybil was a little too much of a hot mess for me and everything with the lottery ticket was over the top. I'm not sure why they decided to fake date (and fake dating is my favorite trope!)

I've enjoyed Denise Williams books in the past but this was just a miss for me.

Sybil has trouble holding a job and lacks a sense of direction. Kieran is a medical student who deferred his admission to help his grandfather run his struggling donut shop. When Sybil comes into the shop, their instant attraction turns into a hot encounter. On accident, she leaves behind a lottery ticket that turns out to be a winner. The two of them agree to fake date which is mutually beneficial to both of them.

Although they had an agreement to fake date, nothing felt fake between them. There was always a crackling chemistry. Sybil could be a bit of a mess, but she had a wonderful energy to her. Kieran appreciated her kindness and good intentions. As their relationship developed into something real, Sybil also found her own way with what gave her a sense of purpose.

This was very cute! If you’re a fan of easy-breezy, low angst romcoms then definitely check it out.

I tend to like a little more depth, or angst, or character growth, and this didn’t really provide any of it. The heroine was an absolute hot mess, she’s probably undiagnosed ADHD but that only explains some of her behaviors. She could not make a good decision to save her life, in fact she made such a bad decision that lead to the third act break up, that I really felt the MMC shouldn’t have forgiven her. The MMC didn’t seem to like her all that much for a good chunk of the book, and while I understood because I also did not like her, that does not make a very swoony romance.

I don’t know - I definitely think there’s an audience for this book, but I just don’t think it was me.

Unfortunately this wasn’t for me. The characters were just unlikeable. FMC’s personality is just I’m immature and makes bad life decisions. Her mom is unpleasant to say the least. MMC and FMC had no chemistry and I did not care about their feelings at all. Overall just had no connection to any part of this.

⭐ 3/5 stars
This contemporary rom-com had all the ingredients for a fun, heartfelt read—polar opposites, a winning lottery ticket, and some fake dating shenanigans. But did it completely win me over? Not quite.

Sybil and Kieran couldn’t be more different. Sybil is impulsive, relies on luck, and never quite sticks to anything. Kieran is disciplined, hardworking, and thrives on structure. After Sybil gets stood up on a date, she finds herself in a donut shop, where she has an almost one-night stand with Kieran. But in her rush to leave, she leaves behind a winning lottery ticket. Despite their differences, an undeniable connection keeps pulling them together.

What I Loved:
🍩 The meet-cute? Adorable. A donut shop rendezvous leading to a whirlwind romance? Yes, please.
💰 The lottery ticket twist? Unique and fun. It gave them a reason to keep crossing paths and created some unexpected moments.
❤️ The fake dating trope? Always a win. There were some cute moments, and I appreciated the added layer of an interracial romance featuring a plus-size FMC.
😂 The secondary characters? Hilarious and charming. Sybil's friends and Kieran's sister brought the humor and lightheartedness that the book needed.

What Didn’t Work for Me:
😤 Sybil tested my patience. At times, I really*liked her, but other times, I wanted to shake some sense into her. She made the same mistakes over and over, which made her feel frustrating rather than endearing.
📉 The character growth was... lacking. I kept waiting for a transformation, but neither Sybil nor Kieran evolved much. Sybil, in particular, didn’t seem to learn from her past choices, which made the ending feel a bit flat.
💔 I wanted more emotions. While the romance was cute, I didn’t feel the emotional depth of connection that would have made it truly swoon-worthy.

This book had a fun premise and some great moments, but the lack of character growth and emotional depth kept it from being a standout read for me. It’s a light, easy rom-com that’s worth picking up if you enjoy fake dating, opposites attract, and quirky setups


Big thanks to Net Galley for this e-arc.

🍩 Steamy Fake Dating
🍩 Grumpy/Sunshine
🍩 Plus Size Rep

“You’re stronger and more capable than you give yourself credit for.”

Sweetness + spice = donuts, a lottery ticket, and some steamy fake dating, anyone?! 🥰

The lovely and curvy Sybil Sweet reminds me so much of myself and how hard she is on herself, yet she has so much about herself. I love how Kieran Anderson eats her up with his eyes and makes her melt with his words (still melting). Grandad and Tom were the sweetest. I love how Sybil’s friends always had her back and the role Lila plays for Kieran, Grandad, and… read to find out!

I loved every bite (hehe) of this, and I highly recommend it!

Thank you to Denise Williams, NetGalley, and Berkley Pub for the opportunity to receive this as an ARC!

2.5⭐️3🌶️

Contemporary Romance
Dual POV
De Moines Setting
Fake dating
Plus size FMC
Interracial relationship
Opposites attract


Just My Luck by Denise Williams offers a charming premise but left me with mixed feelings. The female main character’s undiagnosed ADHD is central to the story, but I struggled with the portrayal. She lacked coping or masking skills, which made it difficult to fully connect with her. Her behavior seemed more in line with how ADHD manifests in men, which felt somewhat jarring.

While the topic of adult ADHD is important, I felt the exploration of it was underdeveloped. The narrative also skips over significant time gaps, leaving the plot feeling disjointed and less engaging. The setting of Des Moines was barely mentioned until Chapter 11, and even then, it felt interchangeable.

On a positive note, the plus-size representation was refreshing. The FMC’s body type was portrayed in an empowering way without becoming the focal point of the story. Additionally, the interracial relationship was portrayed effortlessly, without focusing on societal judgment, which made their connection feel natural and genuine.

Ultimately, while the premise had potential, the execution lacked depth, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that the story was missing something to truly make it stand out.


Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.