Only If You're Lucky
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- Create Date：2023-11-27 07:21:51
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Stacy Willingham
- ISBN：1250329574
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Summary
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。
A tantalizing thriller about the nature of friendship and belonging， about loyalty， envy， and betrayal—another gripping novel from an author quickly becoming the gold standard in psychological suspense。
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。
A tantalizing thriller about the nature of friendship and belonging， about loyalty， envy， and betrayal—another gripping novel from an author quickly becoming the gold standard in psychological suspense。
Reviews
Leslie Hagel
，
Stacy Willingham’s mysteries always keep you on the edge of your seat and her newest title， Only if You’re Lucky， is no exception。Margot tries to move on after losing her best friend Senior year in high schoo and starts college at a small liberal arts school in South Carolinal。 After spending Freshman year mourning the loss and hiding in her all girls dorm with her new roommate， shy， cautious Margot is ready for a change。 When magnetic， bold Lucy asks her to be the fourth in an off-campus house Stacy Willingham’s mysteries always keep you on the edge of your seat and her newest title， Only if You’re Lucky， is no exception。Margot tries to move on after losing her best friend Senior year in high schoo and starts college at a small liberal arts school in South Carolinal。 After spending Freshman year mourning the loss and hiding in her all girls dorm with her new roommate， shy， cautious Margot is ready for a change。 When magnetic， bold Lucy asks her to be the fourth in an off-campus house Sophomore year， Margot excitedly decides to take a chance and agrees。 Together with Sloane and Nicole， the four girls have very different personalities yet become very close friends。 This psychological thriller builds when a student is murdered and another goes missing。 It seems that everyone has a secret。 The character’s unique personalities are so richly detailed that the reader feels each awkward interaction， the painful ramifications of peer pressure and the betrayal of trusted friends。 Readers will love the fast pace of Only if You’re Lucky and just wait for the unexpected surprise at the end！Thanks to St。 Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the advanced reader’s copy in return for my honest review。 。。。more
Sarah
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When Margot is chosen by Lucy Sharpe to be the 4th roommate at their fraternity-owned rental， Margot is thrust into a different world of parties， drugs， and belonging。 But when a member of the frat is found dead and Lucy goes missing， secrets from Margot's past are brought up and may be the key to discovering what happened to them。 I admit this read started off a bit slow and had a hard time holding my interest。 But once it picked up， it was like Bam Bam Bam！ One twist after another， each better When Margot is chosen by Lucy Sharpe to be the 4th roommate at their fraternity-owned rental， Margot is thrust into a different world of parties， drugs， and belonging。 But when a member of the frat is found dead and Lucy goes missing， secrets from Margot's past are brought up and may be the key to discovering what happened to them。 I admit this read started off a bit slow and had a hard time holding my interest。 But once it picked up， it was like Bam Bam Bam！ One twist after another， each better than the last， and it made every slow moment worth it。 The characters were all shady and I didn't know who to trust。 I love the dark academia setting and the different timelines。 I've read all of this author's books and will look forward to the next one！3。75/5⭐ 。。。more
thrillerbookshelved
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This book wasn’t for me at all。 Too slow and too repetitive。 The obsession that the main character has for her “friends” is beyond boring and childish and nothing really happens for 300 pages。 I loved A Flicker In The Dark， didn’t really care for All The Dangerous Things so I was hoping for redemption with this one， unfortunately that did not happen。
McCall LoPiccolo
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Lucy Sharpe is the”it” girl on the college campus。 Margot is rather shy。 Never the center of attention， Margot is completely drawn in by Lucy’s energy。 The two girls meet at the end of Freshman year and become fast friends。 Moving into off campus housing they become inseparable。 Margot is completely infatuated with Lucy and the two other girls she lives with。 But， when Lucy suddenly disappears， it starts to feel like nothing is as it may seem。•Sadly this one was a miss for me。 Having read both W Lucy Sharpe is the”it” girl on the college campus。 Margot is rather shy。 Never the center of attention， Margot is completely drawn in by Lucy’s energy。 The two girls meet at the end of Freshman year and become fast friends。 Moving into off campus housing they become inseparable。 Margot is completely infatuated with Lucy and the two other girls she lives with。 But， when Lucy suddenly disappears， it starts to feel like nothing is as it may seem。•Sadly this one was a miss for me。 Having read both Willingham’s previous books， I had high hopes for this one。 To me， this story felt a bit slow for me。 I wasn’t very connected to the characters or the storyline。 Many times I felt myself thinking the story was over written。 Too many few descriptions to get across a simple point。 I absolutely LOVED All the Dangerous Things， but unfortunately this one is falling into the same category as A Flicker in the Dark。 I have to say this one is a no from me。•I can see the appeal though， and believe there is an audience for this one。 I wouldn’t let my opinion turn you away。 。。。more
Lynn Peterson
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3。75。 I absolutely love this author's previous books and was so excited when I rec'd an ARC to read her latest。 Her books are always a one or two day read because I cannot put them down。 This was no different - it involves a girl and her best friend who are supposed to go to college together in the fall。 Then one friend dies and the story follows the one who goes on to college。 She is quite lonely the first year but then she is befriended by a girl on her dorm floor at the end of her first year 3。75。 I absolutely love this author's previous books and was so excited when I rec'd an ARC to read her latest。 Her books are always a one or two day read because I cannot put them down。 This was no different - it involves a girl and her best friend who are supposed to go to college together in the fall。 Then one friend dies and the story follows the one who goes on to college。 She is quite lonely the first year but then she is befriended by a girl on her dorm floor at the end of her first year and they move in together with two others into a house next door to a fraternity。 This friend is very illusive and puzzling and I had a lot of fun trying to figure out who， what and why in this book。 If you like mean girls/college girls/drama/toxic relationships then you'll love this book。Thank you so much to Stacy Willingham and St。 Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for giving me the opportunity to read this book before it publishes in January。 。。。more
Yamil
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I'm a fan of Stacy Willingham。 She's great with character development， enticing story lines and enough suspense to keep you glued to the pages。 Only if You're Lucky does not disappoint。 Margot is a shy college freshman who is taken in by Lucy， the popular exciting "it" girl on campus。 Life is exciting and fun with the new friends but soon things take a turn for the worse。 This was a definite page turner， with twisty turns and an ending you won't see coming！ I'm a fan of Stacy Willingham。 She's great with character development， enticing story lines and enough suspense to keep you glued to the pages。 Only if You're Lucky does not disappoint。 Margot is a shy college freshman who is taken in by Lucy， the popular exciting "it" girl on campus。 Life is exciting and fun with the new friends but soon things take a turn for the worse。 This was a definite page turner， with twisty turns and an ending you won't see coming！ 。。。more
Vesna Dan
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I had super high hopes for this one。 I loved the authors debut novel and was hoping for a similar pace and plot line。The characters in this novel were many and none likable。It felt like trudging through mud for 75% of the storyline。 The last few chapters made up for what the bulk of the book lacked。 A conclusion wrapped up neatly and with surprising twists。 A story about friendship， belonging， way too much drinking and poor behavior， and what happens when we so badly want to fit in and be seen a I had super high hopes for this one。 I loved the authors debut novel and was hoping for a similar pace and plot line。The characters in this novel were many and none likable。It felt like trudging through mud for 75% of the storyline。 The last few chapters made up for what the bulk of the book lacked。 A conclusion wrapped up neatly and with surprising twists。 A story about friendship， belonging， way too much drinking and poor behavior， and what happens when we so badly want to fit in and be seen and heard。 If you could get away with murder would you do it？ Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for early access。 This title releases January 16， 2024 。。。more
theliterateleprechaun
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“You’re only young once， and only if you’re lucky。"‘Changing it up’ is risky。 For some authors， it doesn’t work。 For Stacy Willingham， dipping her toes into a subgenre - it definitely worked。 I loved this book。 I shouldn’t have enjoyed it。 I don’t care for younger characters， I never joined a fraternity， I never lived in a frat house。 I never did drugs or got ‘wasted。’ BUT…as a university student。。I did know what it was like to be “vanilla， malleable。 A blank slate。” I did know what it was like “You’re only young once， and only if you’re lucky。"‘Changing it up’ is risky。 For some authors， it doesn’t work。 For Stacy Willingham， dipping her toes into a subgenre - it definitely worked。 I loved this book。 I shouldn’t have enjoyed it。 I don’t care for younger characters， I never joined a fraternity， I never lived in a frat house。 I never did drugs or got ‘wasted。’ BUT…as a university student。。I did know what it was like to be “vanilla， malleable。 A blank slate。” I did know what it was like to want to belong。I did know what it was like to want to change who I am。 I did know what it was like to be a chameleon and blend in with my surroundings。 PLUS…Willingham’s writing style is superb！ I love her ability to drop a clue at just the right time。 So many times I stopped reading because I had a lightbulb moment … knowing that the clue was there， I’d read it before but had missed its significance。 The author’s journalism studies definitely added to her ability to tell a great story; she writes a taut plot and surprises readers with the different angles she takes and the way she can get to the meat of the story。 Piggybacking the above thought about hidden clues， I absolutely loved looking for the Easter eggs Willingham placed in this one。 I was aware of the inspiration behind this novel and loved seeing clues show up in the story。 I found 6 and no， I won't give them away。 Being an active reader really increases my enjoyment。 So， that's why I loved it。 Yes， this one is different from her previous two thrillers。 I’ve only read All The Dangerous Things （5-star read） and can tell you that this one is also a thriller， it also has a house as a main character， it has the same wonderfully descriptive writing style and vivid setting， there are still multiple twists and it still messes with your head。 What is different is the types and ages of characters and the dark academia storyline。 With college-aged characters， there’s a lot of ‘college life’ packed into the story。 It enhances the storyline。 You’ll read about✔️Rejection✔️acceptance/belonging✔️Being a part of something bigger than oneselfTwo things:😁 I don’t think I’ll ever look at my couch cushions the same way ever again…will they cough？😁 I won’t forget the Lord of the Flies vibes I got when I read “I suddenly remember the way the shed smelled the very first time I stepped inside; that metallic tang， like something decayed， that has since become as commonplace as the vanilla perfume…I barely notice it anymore， the smell of death。”“It feels good， doesn’t it？ To finally get what you want。”I was gifted this copy by St。 Martin’s Press， Minotaur Books and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review。 。。。more
Shannon Priaulx
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This is the first book I have read by Stacy Willingham and it will not be the last！Margot has been through something tragic and needs to move on with her life。 When she goes to college she is a mousy girl living with the loss of her best friend。 She meets Lucy who takes her under her wing， thinking she found her new BBF she slowly starts to learn that things are not always as they seem and not everyone is who they appear to be。 I received this as an ARC download on netgalley and started it as a This is the first book I have read by Stacy Willingham and it will not be the last！Margot has been through something tragic and needs to move on with her life。 When she goes to college she is a mousy girl living with the loss of her best friend。 She meets Lucy who takes her under her wing， thinking she found her new BBF she slowly starts to learn that things are not always as they seem and not everyone is who they appear to be。 I received this as an ARC download on netgalley and started it as a new "treadmill book" which turned into a all the time book because I had to know what was going to happen！ I loved the suspense， it had me wanting more throughout the entire bookI loved how unpredictable it was！ I did not see the twist coming and that hasn't happened in a long time！！The lies and truths were shockingIt touched on a couple of sensitive subjects - relationship sexual assault being one of themAnd I can not leave out the age old question。。。。 If you could get away with it， would you kill someone？ 。。。more
Danielle Pollman
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I very much enjoyed this simmering slow burning look at toxic female friendships。 I thought it was really well done and the mystery was one that slowly fell into place， but still caught me off guard。 Margot was a really complex character。 She starts off a little bland and numb （and I think that’s on purpose）， but once we really get to know her， she has a really intriguing POV。 I also liked the look at fraternity culture and how dangerous it can be。 It is very much a character driven novel rather I very much enjoyed this simmering slow burning look at toxic female friendships。 I thought it was really well done and the mystery was one that slowly fell into place， but still caught me off guard。 Margot was a really complex character。 She starts off a little bland and numb （and I think that’s on purpose）， but once we really get to know her， she has a really intriguing POV。 I also liked the look at fraternity culture and how dangerous it can be。 It is very much a character driven novel rather than plot， which I know is not everyone’s cup of tea， but it certainly is for me。 I could feel the tension and the eerie vibe that bad things were going to happen and it kept me absolutely engaged in the story。 I did think it maybe needed one more POV， just for some variety and complexity， but I still enjoyed just reading from Margot’s。 If you’re into character driven books with dysfunctional female friendships and a college setting， give this one a try！TW: death， excessive drinking， drug use， sexual assaultThank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for an advanced digital reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Julie Rice
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Sometimes it works for thriller writers to infuse tension and suspense into relatively mundane situations。 For approximately 300 pages， this is what Willingham attempted to do in her latest book。 Unfortunately it was just too slow and uneventful to make that work。 I have read her other two books， and I loved them， so this was a huge disappointment。 I expected a sharp and interesting thriller that kept me guessing but this just had me wishing for it to end。 The main character， was， frankly， awful Sometimes it works for thriller writers to infuse tension and suspense into relatively mundane situations。 For approximately 300 pages， this is what Willingham attempted to do in her latest book。 Unfortunately it was just too slow and uneventful to make that work。 I have read her other two books， and I loved them， so this was a huge disappointment。 I expected a sharp and interesting thriller that kept me guessing but this just had me wishing for it to end。 The main character， was， frankly， awful， and since we only get her pov， we are left to wonder about the motivations of all the other characters。 Margot’s bff from high school dies before she starts college。 Margot made us all think Levi the new neighbor who Eliza was dating did it， because she is a jealous psychopath。 Margot still goes to the school Eliza picked because she had to refuse to follow her mother’s plan even though she only picked it for Eliza。 She then becomes obsessed with Lucy。We get to know almost nothing about Lucy or Eliza except that Margot is a drip of a person who is obsessed and clingy with whoever happens to give her attention， so long as she deems them “cool enough。” Her freshman roommate Maggie was the only decent person in her life and she threw her away like garbage as soon as she could。50% of the book is Margot’s introspection which was quite dull。 25% of the book was college kids getting drunk and the author making frat parties seem a lot more sinister than any I ever experienced。 Around 25% （yes I can math） is the actual plot of the book。 It unravels really fast towards the end， and I predicted only one of the 3 big twists， but it wasn’t worth the slog to get to the “big reveal”。 The writing was nice， but just so excessive for the plot。 Nothing irritates me more than full pages of thought in between short sentences of dialogue， and literal pages that accomplish nothing。 I was thrilled to get this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher， and I really hope the next book by Willingham is more in line with All the Dangerous Things。 。。。more
Books。Abound。With。A。Hound
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Someone is dead， someone is missing， and someone has to pay…I was SO thrilled to have received this ARC as I absolutely loved her first two novels！This one really makes you ponder if someone is capable of both good and evil。 It is very character driven。I really enjoyed it alternating between “before” and “after” leading to a buildup of suspense。 I liked the college academia setting and of course loved the short chapters！ It was a bit repetitive and a slow burn- would’ve liked it to be a bit more Someone is dead， someone is missing， and someone has to pay…I was SO thrilled to have received this ARC as I absolutely loved her first two novels！This one really makes you ponder if someone is capable of both good and evil。 It is very character driven。I really enjoyed it alternating between “before” and “after” leading to a buildup of suspense。 I liked the college academia setting and of course loved the short chapters！ It was a bit repetitive and a slow burn- would’ve liked it to be a bit more fast paced。 However， even with it being slow-paced throughout， the ending picks up speed and was strong！Recommend reading this one when it comes out on January 16th！🖤Thank you @minotaur_books and @stacyvwillingham for this #gifted ARC！🫶🏼 。。。more
Shannon Riegert
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Only If You're Lucky has a dual timeline， set in a college house with 19 yr olds and some good pacing and twists。 I feel that it should be marketed towards older YA， do they call that New Adult now？ If I was solely reading this from that perspective， I would like it way more。 I think that is where it's audience is。 It is similar to The It Girl by Ruth Ware， if you liked that book you may like this one。 Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC。 Only If You're Lucky has a dual timeline， set in a college house with 19 yr olds and some good pacing and twists。 I feel that it should be marketed towards older YA， do they call that New Adult now？ If I was solely reading this from that perspective， I would like it way more。 I think that is where it's audience is。 It is similar to The It Girl by Ruth Ware， if you liked that book you may like this one。 Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC。 。。。more
Lauren -
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3。5 rounded up！！
Hannah Thornton
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Lucy is the girl everyone hates to love but why？ Margot heads to college after the death of her best friend Eliza completely rocks her world。 I did not see the ending coming with this one on several fronts but I have never been disappointed with a Stacy Willingham book yet！ Thanks NetGalley for this ARC！
channy。
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I feel like this was good but also extremely slow， much didn’t happen until the end but I love stories about female friendships especially toxic ones so that was a plus。 It got ramble-y at times which got annoying but the twists were good and I didn’t see some of them coming so I give the book points for that。 Thank you to Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for my honest opinion！
Stacey Gaboury
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Thank you to NetGalley， St。 Martin's Press， and Stacy Willingham for allowing me to review this ARC！ Margot and Eliza are best friends， planning to go to college together when tragedy strikes and Eliza dies just after graduation。 Margot goes to college without her and meets Lucy， a girl that she is drawn to in her familiarities to Eliza。 Lucy brings Margot out of her shell and invites her to move in with her and her friends。 A person from Margot's past， one that she'd soon forget， appears one da Thank you to NetGalley， St。 Martin's Press， and Stacy Willingham for allowing me to review this ARC！ Margot and Eliza are best friends， planning to go to college together when tragedy strikes and Eliza dies just after graduation。 Margot goes to college without her and meets Lucy， a girl that she is drawn to in her familiarities to Eliza。 Lucy brings Margot out of her shell and invites her to move in with her and her friends。 A person from Margot's past， one that she'd soon forget， appears one day and makes her feel uneasy， something that she has felt for a long time。 Lucy seems to be concerned but it could be for purely selfish reasons。 Is Lucy a true friend？ Was Eliza's death an accident or on purpose？ Many storylines interconnect to form an ending that I didn't see coming。 I really appreciate that I couldn't guess what would happen。 This book was interesting and kept me on my toes throughout the entire time I was reading it。 It was a little bit of a slow read at times but I did enjoy the story。 If you like mysteries with a plot twist this is for you！ 。。。more
Megan Moroukian
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💥 Only If You’re Lucky - Stacy Willingham4。25 ⭐️ - Okay y’all， add this to your TBR！ I am a big Stacy Willingham fan。 I’ve enjoyed all 3 of her books now。 The writing is addictive and I flew through this one。 This one was a bit of a slow burn， but by the end it felt so worth it。 I really enjoy Willingham’s writing style with short chapters， before/after timelines， and cliffhangers。 This one is full of twists， turns， hints， and surprises。 I was pleasantly fooled when I got to the end。 I felt the 💥 Only If You’re Lucky - Stacy Willingham4。25 ⭐️ - Okay y’all， add this to your TBR！ I am a big Stacy Willingham fan。 I’ve enjoyed all 3 of her books now。 The writing is addictive and I flew through this one。 This one was a bit of a slow burn， but by the end it felt so worth it。 I really enjoy Willingham’s writing style with short chapters， before/after timelines， and cliffhangers。 This one is full of twists， turns， hints， and surprises。 I was pleasantly fooled when I got to the end。 I felt the end was a bit rushed。 There was a lot of build up and character development， so honestly， I wanted more。 I wish I had an epilogue to see where the characters are after the events occurred。 Her dark academia， character development and overlapping storylines are easy and fast to follow。 If you’re a thriller， mystery， or Willingham fan， I definitely recommend this one。 Keep your eyes peeled for it to hit shelves on 1/16/24。 Thank you Minotaur books， NetGalley and Stacy Willingham for the early arc copy！ 。。。more
Annie Persico
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Margot just barely survived her freshman year at her South Carolina college。 Majoring in English and missing her childhood best friend she lives in an all female dorm with 24 other girls on her floor。 Shy， never a leader， and never the center of attention she is a careful one。Lucy is enigmatic and bold; the quintisential "cool" girl with an air of mystery。 Usually flanked by her sidekicks Sloane and Nicole and rarely seen in any of her classes。Lucy is very much like Margot's childhood best frien Margot just barely survived her freshman year at her South Carolina college。 Majoring in English and missing her childhood best friend she lives in an all female dorm with 24 other girls on her floor。 Shy， never a leader， and never the center of attention she is a careful one。Lucy is enigmatic and bold; the quintisential "cool" girl with an air of mystery。 Usually flanked by her sidekicks Sloane and Nicole and rarely seen in any of her classes。Lucy is very much like Margot's childhood best friend Eliza。 When Lucy approaches Margot to move into an off campus house， with a bunch of frat bros as landlords， Margot decides to finally take a risk。 She comes out of her shell， makes new friends， and runs into old aquintances。 Personally I did not have a live at college experience- but if i did I would have expected it to begin like Margot's A house on my own with friends， parties next door， and friendsgiving。 What I wouldn't have expected was the death of a neighborhood frat bro and a missing person's case to content with。 The dual time-line of the story examines friendship， belonging， and daily college life both before and after Margot finds the body of her neighbor frat bro after a night of drinking and debuachery on a local island。 The book toes the line between YA and NA with the final twist being slightly unbelievable， however I really enjoyed it。 I generally like when characters on the cusp of adulthood are faced with both age appropriate & inappropriate situations and struggle to find solutions to either without the guidance of established authority。 This one was a definite slow burn with lots of different threads of mystery coming together in the final reveal。Fans of Pretty Little Liars， Mean Girls， and How to Get Away with Murder would more than likely enjoy this one！ 。。。more
Hannah Emerson
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Amazing！！！ I would have finished this in a day if it weren’t for travel and spending time with family。 Stacey keeps you on your toes， sharing just enough to make you want to scream and read ONE MORE chapter。 Finally at 70% I couldn’t put it down。 I had to know！！！ The twists！ Wow， all the stars！ Thank you Netgalley and St Martins Press for my first ARC！ It did not disappoint ❤️
Holly
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Many thanks to @minotaur_books， @stmartinspress， and @netgalley for my #gifted copies。 Pub date 1/16/24。Margot and her childhood best friend， Eliza， are accepted into the same college and were supposed to be roommates together until Eliza died。 Margot， who is very shy and keeps to herself， decides she still wants to go。 At the end of her first year， she is approached by Lucy， the popular， pretty girl everyone wants to be friends with， who asks Margot to be her roommate with her and 2 other girls Many thanks to @minotaur_books， @stmartinspress， and @netgalley for my #gifted copies。 Pub date 1/16/24。Margot and her childhood best friend， Eliza， are accepted into the same college and were supposed to be roommates together until Eliza died。 Margot， who is very shy and keeps to herself， decides she still wants to go。 At the end of her first year， she is approached by Lucy， the popular， pretty girl everyone wants to be friends with， who asks Margot to be her roommate with her and 2 other girls。 Margot can not believe her luck， and she accepts。 Things are going great until a fraternity brother is brutally murdered and Lucy goes missing。 This was a slow burn thriller and very different from Stacy's previous books that I absolutely loved！ This one read more like a YA book。 We learn early on in the book that Eliza dies， Lucy goes missing， and a fraternity brother is murdered， but we don't know why or how。 The first half of the book really had me guessing what the heck actually happened， and the ending actually shocked me， I was totally way off！ I absolutely love Stacy's writing style， and I will read anything she writes。 Be prepared to relive your college days！ 。。。more
reflectingonthepages
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NetGalley ARC ReviewDisclaimer: I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review。 All of the opinions are my own。 Lucy Sharpe seems larger than life with her bold， and dangerous personality。 Margot meets Lucy at the end of freshman at the Liberal Arts College she’s attending in South Carolina。 Margot is shy， careful， and always the sidekick but never the center of attention。 After a year of Margot studying and living a safe life Lucy singles Margot out and invites her to roo NetGalley ARC ReviewDisclaimer: I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review。 All of the opinions are my own。 Lucy Sharpe seems larger than life with her bold， and dangerous personality。 Margot meets Lucy at the end of freshman at the Liberal Arts College she’s attending in South Carolina。 Margot is shy， careful， and always the sidekick but never the center of attention。 After a year of Margot studying and living a safe life Lucy singles Margot out and invites her to room together， Margot can’t say no。 Margot wants to be daring and starved for attention finds herself envious of Lucy。 Margot moves into an off-campus house with Lucy （the ringleader）， Sloane （the sarcastic one）， and Nicole （the nice one）。 The three girls are opposites but seem so entwined together。 Margot has been in living in her shell since her best friend， Eliza， died three weeks after high school graduation but Lucy quickly becomes Margot’s new best friend。 By the middle of sophomore year a boy from the fraternity house next door is found murdered and Lucy has vanished without a trace。 TW: sexual assault， blood I’m sorry to say I was not taken in by this book。 Margot tells the story but her warped reality of friendship felt more like obsession。 She doesn’t just befriend Eliza and Lucy but becomes all encompassed by them。 She’s a pushover who blindly follows Lucy like a lost puppy never questioning anything。 The timeline jumps between Margot’s past friendship with Eliza and her current friendship with Lucy。 For most of the book we read about drug and alcohol hazed stupors sprinkled with drama from the fraternity house next door。 I found myself bored reading about the drunken parties， fraternity hazing， and stupid antics of teenagers while Margot recounts her past friendship with Eliza。 The story doesn’t really pick up the pace until almost the end when things begin to unravel。 I guessed 3/4 of the plot line before it even happened and was only surprised by two events。 It felt predictable to me with an ending that left a few loose threads。 。。。more
Melissa
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This is an enjoyable slow burn thriller about friendships and the imbalance of power。 As the story unfolds， the author reveals how in each friendship， one friend either wants or needs the other friend more。 As we learn more about the characters， we begin to see who （supposedly） holds the power in the relationship- but all of that starts to crumble as secrets come to light。
Noelani
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I read and loved Stacy Willingham’s previous two books， and while I didn’t love this one， it was definitely a wild ride。For me， this was one of those books where none of the characters are likable， which isn’t always a bad thing， but I had a love/hate relationship with it here。 The MC Margot was so easily influenced by her friends that I was often yelling at her to grow a backbone while reading。 I also had a harder time getting into the story when I didn’t feel very strongly （in a positive way） I read and loved Stacy Willingham’s previous two books， and while I didn’t love this one， it was definitely a wild ride。For me， this was one of those books where none of the characters are likable， which isn’t always a bad thing， but I had a love/hate relationship with it here。 The MC Margot was so easily influenced by her friends that I was often yelling at her to grow a backbone while reading。 I also had a harder time getting into the story when I didn’t feel very strongly （in a positive way） about any of the characters。 I was for sure getting some Mean Girls vibes while reading this， but in a more sinister， mysterious way。 This may be fun and enjoyable to other readers， but it didn’t always work for me here。The small college setting was fun， and set up some good plot points， especially in regard to the living situation。 I had a hard time figuring out who/what to trust， and the multiple timelines added a lot to this， which kept me guessing most of the book。 The only downside for me was the slow pace。 It wasn’t until about the 70% point where things started to pick up， which is too far along for me。 However， it did make the growing unease that much more suspenseful。There were some twists along the way that I suspected， and then others I didn’t see coming that were actually shocking （especially towards the end）。 The ending felt a little abrupt and I think there could’ve been more there， but I liked the point it leaves us at。This one is a little different from Willingham’s other work， but still worth a read！Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advance copy。 。。。more
Jessica Takatch
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4。5 ⭐️’s rounded up！
Jessica Gregory
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This was a whole lotta nothing and a whole lotta chaos at the same time。 Well， not at the same time because the whole lotta nothing lasted about 90% of the book lol then the chaos came and I asked myself what the hell is goin on here？？ I was just expecting one twist and was like oh ok this makes sense and then they just kept coming！！ A lot of Dr。 Jekyll and Hyde references if you’re into that。 Realistic？ No。 Entertaining？ Yes。 Was this my favorite Stacy Willingham novel？ No。 Will I read the next This was a whole lotta nothing and a whole lotta chaos at the same time。 Well， not at the same time because the whole lotta nothing lasted about 90% of the book lol then the chaos came and I asked myself what the hell is goin on here？？ I was just expecting one twist and was like oh ok this makes sense and then they just kept coming！！ A lot of Dr。 Jekyll and Hyde references if you’re into that。 Realistic？ No。 Entertaining？ Yes。 Was this my favorite Stacy Willingham novel？ No。 Will I read the next one by her？ Yes。 Thank you Minotaur for my ARC！ 。。。more
Taja
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Thank you NetGalley and Ms。 Willingham for the opportunity to review "Only if You're Lucky。" This book is a treasure for readers who love thrillers。 The web of secrets that are interwoven throughout the story keep the reader guessing。 Fans of "The It Girl，" by Ruth Ware will certainly enjoy this story。 One of my favorite thrillers of the year so far。 Highly recommended。 Thank you NetGalley and Ms。 Willingham for the opportunity to review "Only if You're Lucky。" This book is a treasure for readers who love thrillers。 The web of secrets that are interwoven throughout the story keep the reader guessing。 Fans of "The It Girl，" by Ruth Ware will certainly enjoy this story。 One of my favorite thrillers of the year so far。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Courtney Shea
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I was very interested in the premise of this story; it was very much something up my alley and I have read this author before and enjoyed the books。 This was interesting， but it dragged on a bit in the middle and didn’t keep me completely hooked。 However， the twists and turns at the end gave me whiplash and the way everything connected together was SO cool！
Amy Horvitz
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This is my second Stacy Willingham book with A Flicker in the Dark being my first。 I felt about the same as I did with my first。 This was a decent book that had a good ending but the first half of the book seemed to drag a bit。 There was a little too much setup to the story and it wasn’t until about 70% in that anything shocking really happened。 It was quite the slow burn。 Many have said that it reads like a YA novel and I would agree but it’s about college aged kids so I didn’t mind that aspect This is my second Stacy Willingham book with A Flicker in the Dark being my first。 I felt about the same as I did with my first。 This was a decent book that had a good ending but the first half of the book seemed to drag a bit。 There was a little too much setup to the story and it wasn’t until about 70% in that anything shocking really happened。 It was quite the slow burn。 Many have said that it reads like a YA novel and I would agree but it’s about college aged kids so I didn’t mind that aspect。 I just wanted there to be more twists and shocking moments。 I still want to go back and read All the Dangerous Things because I’ve heard that is her best book。 Thanks to #netgalley and St。 Martins Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review。 #mysterythriller#thrillersuspense#StacyWillingham#bookrecs#bookstagram 。。。more
Amanda Kelley
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I would love to leave a review but I have yet to receive this book and I was really looking forward to reading this as soon as it had arrived。 I am hoping maybe it will get resent to me so I have the chance to enjoy it。
Tag
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only if you're lucky a novel stacy willingham only if you're lucky now only if you're lucky meaning only if you're lucky now chords ryan adams only if you're lucky
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Only If You're Lucky
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Only If You're Lucky&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Only If You're Lucky&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0