well-written book that i felt would be a fun cozy romance and that had some surprisingly pretty good mystery chunks. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.

This sweet romance was also a super fun one! I related so much to Eliza, and I adored her. Juneberry Lake sounds sooo dreamy. And Joel!!!! Sigh. I also thought that the mystery aspects were so much fun. I live a little side plot in my romances. Very well done!

Cute, but a little underwhelming. You'd think with everything going on (fresh new start, cozy small town life, mysterious neighbors, and handsome and interesting man), it would have held my interest a little more. But maybe there was just too much going on, and the story was spread too thin without enough meat to any part of it.

Recommended for women who are looking for a quick, light read.

So this book started out strong and then got to predictable for me ! The writing was great the story was meh !thank you net galley for allowing me to read this

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Lucky Break by Jaclyn Westlake

If you like found family, cute dogs, a little mystery, and small towns, do I have the book for you! Last year I read Dear Dotty, and found it to be a very endearing book, and I was mad I had put it off. When I received an ARC for this one, I vowed to read it before the day it came out because I wanted to let the people know about it.

There are so many things about this book that I love. I love the concept of going to a small town and becoming part of the groups. Befriending neighbors. Finding your people! There are so many great neighbors and representation. The romance is just enough. It’s there, but it isn’t the entire story.

There is infertility in this book and unlike some romance authors who I will not name, Jaclyn writes a book that makes it okay to not have a child. Not everyone’s HEA involves magically getting pregnant. Honestly, if you think that’s a spoiler, I’m not sorry. I think it’s important to point that out because again, some authors put a lot of effort into writing infertility issues only to have it resolved in the epilogue.

And I cannot emphasize enough there is a three legged dog named Potato. There’s other dogs too because one of the neighbors rescues dogs.

This book is expected to release July 15th and I’m going to remind you about it because I bet a lot of you would love it too. It’s like a hug.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon for the ARC!

Lucky Break was a confusing read for me I took a very long time to get immersed into the characters and world that Jaclyn Westlake created. There was a bustle of city life in the beginning and suddenly slowed down once our character makes the sudden move to Minnesota. It meanders way too long and while it aims to be charming, I'm sorry to share it's extremely boring and fails to capture a reader's attention. I had to DNF this book and I really tried my best to hold on.

There was an attempt at a mystery but I just really didn't care for it. While it could've been a stronger plot devise it hampered the pace of the overall book. It felt unnecessary and I'm not entirely sure what the author wanted to accomplish by including it and I didn't feel invested enough to continue reading. Overall, Lucky Break isn't memorable (I really couldn't even bring myself to remember the title while I was discussing it with a friend) and just a really plain book. I guess give this book a read if you're hanging out by a lake this summer.

Thank you Avon Books for the ARC.

Eliza is so relatable! I too love having a plan and imagining milestones. I also like to do drastic things when said plans and milestones don’t happen. What a fun journey of an unexpected plan! It shows you that life can look different than expected but somehow that’s how it’s meant to be! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

2.5 ⭐️

I enjoyed the small town lake setting and journey of self-discovery for Eliza, our FMC. I felt the plot here had a lot of potential and did shine through at certain points in the book, however it did fall flat for me. I didn’t buy into the romance in this book because it almost became a sub plot. Joel and Eliza had some cute coffee meets and conversations but it didn’t feel like more to me. I also wanted a bit more from the mystery to keep me engaged. I almost think this book should have focused on romance or mystery- it became too much. However, this was a quick and light read that may be very enjoyable for others! It just wasn’t the best book for me.

Wrapped up,with a giant red bow is the best summer suspenseful cozy action
you will read this year. It starts out with a lot going on, and each chapter is a
step towards some amazing, frightening, exciting circumstances. There may’
be other novels with a small similarity, but nothing with straight up excitement
in each chapter. You will NOT miss a page because you won’t want to miss a
harrowing event or that kiss, or critical plot lines that are just so well crafted.
This is THE 2025 Summer Suspense and Lovers Event~ a not to be missed
series in a single book!
My thanks to Avon Publishing via. NetGalley for the download copy
of this book for review purposes.

I thought this book was an okay read, but it didn’t quite meet my expectations. I felt like the premise was promising—the idea of Eliza reinventing her life in a picturesque small town after her engagement fell apart seemed like it could be full of romance and intrigue. I admired Eliza’s bravery in making such a big change and buying a house sight unseen, but the story itself didn’t captivate me as much as I had hoped. I felt like the romance between Eliza and Joel didn’t have the depth or spark I was looking for. While I enjoyed their moments in the coffee shop and appreciated Joel’s role in the story, I found myself wishing there was more chemistry and emotional connection between them. I was hoping for a romance that would sweep me off my feet, but it felt underwhelming. I felt the mystery surrounding the Midwestern neighbors and their secret could have been explored in a more compelling way. I wanted more suspense or twists to keep me engaged, but the reveal didn’t have the impact I was expecting. I found parts of the story to be slow, and I struggled to stay invested in Eliza’s journey.

Overall, I thought the book had potential but didn’t deliver on the elements that would have made it more exciting. I felt like it lacked the romantic and mysterious flair I was hoping for, and it ended up feeling a bit dull. It was fine for a light read, but it didn’t leave a lasting impression.

A perfectly placed ad leads to a freshly dumped Eliza going on a journey... to a small town Cul-de-Sac. But her neighbors are quite as welcoming as she thought, actually they seemed to be hiding something. Can she figure out why the woman who sold her house left so quickly? Or why she can't seem to get into her neighbors good graces? Or what she is doing with her life?

I really like the quirky neighbors and the dogs. I was pretty invested in the mystery and self discovery. The romance is chaste but the banter is sweet. I was expecting more of a romance, but it's more of the C-plot.

3.25/5

Thank you to the publisher and #NetGalley for an early reader's copy in exchange for an honest review!

LUCKY BREAK
2.75 /3⭐️
(ARC review) — Thank you to author Jaclyn Westlake and her publisher Avon. I received an Advanced Reader Copy for the July 2025 release of LUCKY BREAK in exchange for my honest review.

Picked this one up for the cover. Adorable artwork. This was a cute and fun read. Of course as a Lakelife gal, loved the lake and small town setting.

This had a lot of potential but just snuffed out and fell flat. It just got pretty boring. Just didn’t click for me. I also forgot what genre I was reading. Was this mystery? Chic-lit? Romance? Felt like it was trying to be all but wasn’t any of those?

Now Potato, Potato we loved. We needed more Potato. 🐶

As an avid mystery/thriller reader, I was seeking to break away from the intensity and was given the opportunity to read this one. Wow! While obviously not intense nor touted as a mystery, this one gave just enough “suspense” (if you will) while staying but light-hearted but real. I loved it.

I just loved the small lake town in this book. The characters we meet and their stories that are unfolded. This book has a little bit of mystery, secrets, and a journey of finding yourself. There is also an adorable three legged dog named Potato that really won me over. Eliza has always had her life planned and map out. However, after a devastating breakup with her finances she embarks on a new journey in a new town. Moving from San Francisco to a small lake community in Minnesota was quite the change!! I love how she embraces the change and really tries to make friends with her neighbors. It’s a cozy small town story with some deep topics especially about infertility experiences.

I'll round up from a 2.5.

It's a cute read, it's just a little monotonous. There was a lot going on, from the mystery to the small romance to Eliza's own stuff she needed to work through, but the way it was pieced together was a little dull to me. I'm not entirely sure why, either, it just... felt like Eliza was commenting on every occurrence in her life like it was the weather. And as quirky as the characters were, too, it read like they had one major characteristic and that was that for them.

The mystery was predictable and easy and was fine for the story. I do wish we had more of the town aspect; most of this centralized around Eliza's neighbors and their secrets. I'm also not sure why Eliza felt that badly about digging into the mystery? She didn't cause anything and you'd think her neighbors would have been at least a little sorry they'd been lying to her when they admitted that "she grew on them" and they were actually liking her. It didn't make much sense to me why Eliza seemed to be the only one who felt bad.

thank you Netgalley and Jaclyn Westlake for the arc!

Thank you to net galley for the arc. This book was cute. Eliza had everything until she didnt. Her life is now falling apart and her engagement is off. She never thought she'd be raising her 2 children alone, near her loud Italian family.

I absolutely LOVED Lucky Break. It has a small lake town, romance, drama, a bit of mystery, and some cute pups. This is the perfect summer read (again, small lake town) and the characters were very realistic and easy to relate to. The character development was also very relatable and brought some issues that don’t get a ton of coverage to light. The mystery part of the plot was not what I expected, which I loved not being able to guess the ending.

Overall, this was a 5 star for me, and I will definitely be recommending this to friends!

A cute and cozy story on self growth with a splash of romance and mystery.

First and foremost, I loved Potato, Bubbles, and all the other dogs! Gal is like…life goals between her loving relationship and her post retirement job taking care of all the rescue dogs.

Overall it was a sweet and wholesome story as Eliza copes with infertility, breaking up with her fiancé, and the off-page death of a friend. By the end, she builds a life she is excited about. The story is full of finding one’s self, the importance of friends, and realizing not everything in life can be planned.

My biggest issue with the book was that it felt a little anticlimactic. Yes, Eliza faces her heartache from both Marco and Hannah, which is good growth. However, she still seems a bit selfish and self absorbed so there wasn’t as much closure there as I hoped. Similarly, the mystery was a fun and low stakes surprise twist. But I never really bought into why Eliza was digging into Erica in the first place (aside from being nosy).

3.5 rounded up. Closed door romance; some religious undertones.

Thank you to Jaclyn Westlake, Avon, and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

a quick and easy read, the writing flowed really well! it was essentially a cute little town hallmark movie and romcom baker into one book with the cutest happy ending.

I received this book as an ARC from Netgalley. This is going to be a 4.5 star book for me. I picked it up not knowing what to expect at all, and I loved it.

Read this book if you want a fun summer getaway with cute dogs, a small town, and quirky neighbors. It has some depth to it (TW - infertility), some mystery, and some romance (closed door). I needed a book to read in between holds at the library, and never did I expect to devour this book so quickly. It was just such a feel good read and made me ready for summer (as well as made me want to move to a lake and become bffs with my neighbors). Perfect beach read!!!

I also loved Enzo - he deserves a shout out. I love seeing neurodivergent representation in books, and I loved his relationship with his sister. I would read a book just about Enzo, him meeting his gf, and running the bakery!