A Thousand Words A Million Books || A Young Adult Book Blog: Lottery

Title: Lucky in Love

Author: by Kasie West

Publisher: Scholastic

Release Date: July 25th 2017

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance

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Synopsis: In this new contemporary from YA star Kasie West, a girl who wins the lottery learns that money can cause more problems than it solves, especially when love comes into the picture.
Maddie doesn't believe in luck. She's all about hard work and planning ahead. But one night, on a whim, she buys a lottery ticket. And then, to her astonishment --
She wins!
In a flash, Maddie's life is unrecognizable. No more stressing about college scholarships. Suddenly, she's talking about renting a yacht. And being in the spotlight at school is fun... until rumors start flying, and random people ask her for loans. Now, Maddie isn't sure who she can trust.
Except for Seth Nguyen, her funny, charming coworker at the local zoo. Seth doesn't seem aware of Maddie's big news. And, for some reason, she doesn't want to tell him. But what will happen if he learns her secret?
With tons of humor and heart, Kasie West delivers a million-dollar tale of winning, losing, and falling in love.

Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars

You have a bigger chance of being hit by lightning TWICE that winning the lottery – and yet, within the past month, I’ve read two different but equally fun books on teenagers who’ve won the lottery.

I liked a lot of things about Lucky In Love – the easy flow of the story which meant I could put the book down and pick it up without forgetting anything. I liked Seth and Maddie together and the way they balanced each other out as well as their easy banter. There was a lot to like but nothing that I really fell in love with.

Let’s go more into detail:

1. Maddie and her family have money problems. Her parents are constantly fighting, her brother has taken a semester off college as he’s covered in student loan debt and then there’s Maddie, working her way towards a scholarship because that’s the only way she’ll go to college at all.

2. And so, after she wins the lotters, her whole life changes. She gifts each of her family members a million dollars and then well, spends the rest of the book buying extravagant cars and throwing parties on a yacht, investing in a phony real estate deal and talking about how untrustworthy everyone has become.

3. It was a good book, a GOOD book, but I didn’t connect with Maddie at all. Or Seth for that matter. All of them had this one singular personality and never deviated from it or even grew as characters through the course of this book.

"Magic cannot be explained. It can only be experiences."

4. Maddie’s friends kind of sucked. They never felt like real PEOPLE but more like filler characters and that annoyed me.

5. Like I said in the beginning, Maddie and Seth had this fun, easy banter going on through the course of the book which kept this book alive and I really liked it. The only strange thing was that in the ending, without officially dating for even a DAY, they decide to keep dating long distance as well. That whole scene came out as forced and awkward it I honestly thought it was not needed.

All in all, if you’re already a Kasie West fan, I do recommend reading this book. If you are choosing between this book and Windfall though, I definitely prefer that.

A fun, easy to read book about the consequences of money with a super cute romance. 3.5 stars.

I write YA. I eat Junior Mints. Sometimes I go crazy and do both at the same time. My novels are: PIVOT POINT and its sequel SPLIT SECOND. And my contemporary novels: THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US, ON THE FENCE, THE FILL-IN BOYFRIEND, PS I LIKE YOU, and BY YOUR SIDE. My agent is the talented and funny Michelle Wolfson.

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Title: Windfall
Author: Jennifer E Smith
Publication Date: May 4th 2017
Publisher: Pan Macmillan UK
Part of a Series?: No, A Standalone
I Got A Copy Through: Pan Macmillan India (THANK YOU!)
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Blurb Description: Alice doesn’t believe in luck—at least, not the good kind. But she does believe in love, and for some time now, she’s been pining for her best friend, Teddy. On his eighteenth birthday—just when it seems they might be on the brink of something—she buys him a lottery ticket on a lark. To their astonishment, he wins $140 million, and in an instant, everything changes.
At first, it seems like a dream come true, especially since the two of them are no strangers to misfortune. As a kid, Alice won the worst kind of lottery possible when her parents died just over a year apart from each other. And Teddy’s father abandoned his family not long after that, leaving them to grapple with his gambling debts. Through it all, Teddy and Alice have leaned on each other. But now, as they negotiate the ripple effects of Teddy’s newfound wealth, a gulf opens between them. And soon, the money starts to feel like more of a curse than a windfall.
As they try to find their way back to each other, Alice learns more about herself than she ever could have imagined . . . and about the unexpected ways in which luck and love sometimes intersect.

This book’s summary in a nutshell:

a) Best Friend Romance (AKA – MY ACHILLES HEEL OF ALL CONTEMPORARY PLOTS)

b) WINNING OVER A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS IN THE LOTTERY.

c) Lives have been changed forever

The minute I read Windfall’s summary, I knew I WANTED IT. Which is why, after having binge read this book in 1.5 days, I’m sitting on my bed, typing out this review, slightly in love I’m unable to open another one because IT WAS JUST THAT GOOD.

My Thoughts:

1. Like I said, I love the idea behind this book. Who doesn’t win the lottery with the hope that they will WIN ALL THAT MONEY and live the life they’ve always dreamed of? Almost NOBODY. Add a best friend romance in the mix and I’m SOLD.

2. One of the first things that struck me about this book after I actually began reading was how grounded a character Alice was. I always like these kinds of fictional girls better and I instantly connected with her. Also, TELL ME ABOUT UNREQUIETED FEELINGS!

3. Another things I LOVED SO SO MUCH about this book was the presence of strong, sturdy parents. Alice’s aunt and uncle and such amazing people that only want the best for their son and orphan niece who they’ve taken in as their own. They were the PERFECT PARENTS AND I LOVED THAT YA is finally getting some.

4. I should mention that they Harry Potter reference almost had me in tears. SERIOUSLY. It warmed my heart and YOU NEED TO READ THIS.

5. I also loved my boys, Leo and Sawyer. I love big brothers in any kind of setting and Leo was only slightly awesome. I wish we got to see more of Max, of that Leo and Max will have a book of their own because SWOON. Sawyer was also a fun, stand-up kind of guy and I loved his humour.

6. Surprisingly, the one thing I thought I’d LOVE was the one thing I didn’t like about the book – and that was Teddy and Alice together. For starters, Teddy wasn’t my favourite person. I didn’t have a specific problem with him BUT with all the other great characters, he probably ranked last for me in this book (which is even more surprising because he’s exactly like my best friend IRL.) More than anything, I didn’t feel a spark between the two of them or anything but a forced romance.

Harry Potter references guaranteed to make your eyes shed a few tear drops, the lottery, family and brilliant characters – Windfall is one amazing book you should get your hands on!

Jennifer E. Smith is the author of eight books for young adults, including WINDFALL and THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT. She earned her master's degree in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, and her writing has been translated into 33 languages.

You can visit her on her website or follow her on Twitter