Lucky In Love by Kasie West – Review and Giveaway!

Earlier this year I read my very first Kasie West book, By Your Side.  I fell in love with that book from the very first page, and I instantly knew that I would read anything Kasie West wrote from that point on.  So when the awesome folks at Scholastic sent an ARC of Lucky In Love my way, let me just say that I really did jump up and down with excitement.  This was one of my most anticipated reads for summer, and it definitely did not disappoint.

First off, look at that cover!  The cover alone promises the perfect contemporary summer romance – there is even a heart shaped balloon there – how cute is that?!  Couple that with the great sounding plot and you have such an exciting sounding book that would be great for the beach, the park, or just a cozy day in front of the air conditioner.

Maddie lives for her job at the zoo – it helps her escape the stress of being a perfect student, her parents arguing, her brother at home because they can’t afford his tuition, and the family money problems.  At the zoo, she can be herself around the animals – and her crush, Seth.

On the night of Maddie’s 18th birthday, she is supposed to be having a small party with her two best friends – only neither of them show.  So she gets in her car and drives to the convience store to get some candy for herself, and instead finds herself being talked into purchasing a Powerball ticket.  Maddie isn’t one for taking chances with such high odds, but she figures why not?  She buys a ticket, goes home, and goes to bed, without ever giving it another thought.

The next day, when she hears that the winning ticket was sold in her area, Maddie gets curious. 

She decides to check and see if she won anything, and to her absolute surprise, finds out that she wins the jackpot of about fifty million dollars – and she can’t believe it.

“I checked them again and then a third time, just to make sure.  Was this really happening?  Had I just won fifty million dollars?  This felt like some sort of joke.  I checked the heading of the site again – Powerball.  And my ticket heading, same.
I won the lottery.  I just won fifty million dollars.”

She figures that all of life’s problems are solved.  She gives a million each to her mom, dad, and brother, and pays for her brother’s tuition to get him back to school.  Then she spends a little on herself – she buys some things for college, she buys herself some new clothes, and a brand new car – she spends a bit more than she had planned on, but she figures she will still have enough for herself.

Then news gets out that Maddie is the girl who won the lottery – and suddenly she has people talking to her that never gave her the time of day before.  Popular kids are coming to her all the time, and Maddie tries to enjoy the new attention, but when the news is leaked online that Maddie isn’t spending the money in a positive way ($20,000 for a yacht party?), she has to figure out who talked to the reporter and why.

In the meantime, she is still dealing with her parents arguing, her choice of college hanging in the air, her brother’s newfound gambling problem, and the fact that Seth doesn’t know she won – she hasn’t told him, because she doesn’t want another person to like her only for her money.  However, when things start to get serious between them and an actual relationship seems very possible, she can’t seem to find the right way to tell him, either.

Can Maddie deal with everything she is dealing with, find the right way to come clean to Seth, and figure out her friends and family without losing her mind? 

Kasie West has delivered yet another sweet, fun filled contemporary romance that will make you swoon.  Maddie’s character is so fun and relatable, and I love how loyal and sweet she is.  Sure, she does go a bit overboard with some things (designer clothes and a super pricey car), but then again, who wouldn’t?  At the same time, she is trying to bail her brother out of his situation and doing what she can to help make her parents to stay together and happy.  Maddie has such a great heart, and I think that’s why I loved her character so much.

I even loved Seth’s character – especially at the end of the book.  He doesn’t know that Maddie won the lottery since she doesn’t want to tell him, but he seems like the kind of character who wouldn’t care either way.  I love how things turned out for both Seth and Maddie in the end – the two of them just seem to go perfectly together.

Kasie West’s writing style is so easy to get into and really enjoy.  I love the dialog between characters and how none of the relationships (both crushes and friends) seem forced.  Everything flows so nicely and makes for a great story.

Whether you are a newcomer to Kasie West’s work (kind of like me, haha), or you’ve been reading her books for a while, this is definitely not one to miss.  If I could pick the perfect book for summer, Lucky in Love would definitely be it!  I am giving this one a rare 5 star rating, and I seriously recommend this book to everyone!

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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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