Only If You're Lucky by Stacy Willingham

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.

Published by Minotaur Books
on January 16, 2024

Review:

I received an advance galley of this book courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve had both “All the Dangerous Things” and “A Flicker in the Dark” on my iPad for at least a year. After reading this book, I am definitely bumping them up on the list. “Only If You’re Lucky” was exactly the thriller I needed at this moment, and I loved how it explores the intricate dynamics of friendship and the deep-seated desire to be more than ordinary.

The story follows Margot, a shy and cautious young woman who has always played the role of the sidekick, never the center of attention. Her life takes an unexpected turn when she meets Lucy Sharpe, a larger-than-life character who exudes an addictive magnetism. Lucy reminds Margot of her best friend, Eliza, who was killed in an accident three weeks after graduation. Eliza was always the magnetic one that everyone noticed – Margot, her faithful sidekick. The two were supposed to attend college together, but instead, Margot had to go alone, flying under the radar and making few friends (per usual). Then, at the end of their freshman year, Lucy singles out Margot and asks her to become roommates. Unable to resist the allure of something daring and the possibility of having the fun and exciting college career she’d dreamed of with Eliza, Margot agrees, stepping out of her comfort zone into the unknown.

Margot finds herself living in an off-campus house with Lucy and two other girls, Sloane and Nicole – each different in their own way. Despite their differences, the four girls become deeply intertwined, forming a bond that both supports and challenges them. However, their idyllic college life is shattered when a fraternity boy and someone from Margot’s past is brutally murdered. The incident sends shockwaves through the campus, and tensions rise as suspicion and fear grip the college community. Amidst the chaos, Lucy Sharpe suddenly disappears without a trace, leaving behind a trail of unanswered questions and a whole lot of suspicion. Margot, Sloane, and Nicole claim that they have no idea where Lucy is, but are they being honest, or are they covering for their friend?

Through Margot’s perspective, the novel delves deep into the twisted nature of friendship. It examines the lengths to which individuals are willing to go to belong and the consequences that ensue when envy seeps into those relationships. As the layers of each character are peeled back, readers are left questioning everyone’s motives and loyalties. Per usual, I had several suspicions about where this one could potentially go, and I’m happy to say that it kept me on my toes the entire time I was reading it.

Willingham expertly reveals just enough information at the right moments, keeping readers guessing until the very end. There were a couple of nice twists toward the end that I did not see coming at all, which is always a happy surprise for me because I’m usually really good about figuring things out early on.

Overall, “Only If You’re Lucky” is a gripping and enthralling read. The characters are all rich and complex, the pacing is perfect, and the plot is very tight. I really enjoyed this one and will be checking out the rest of her books in the coming year.