Monday, July 3, 2017

Review: Lucky in Love - Kasie West

Lucky in Love
Kasie West
Series: n/a
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Scholastic
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads
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.
Disclosure: I am a Kasie West fangirl. I have read and loved all of her books. She just tends to write the type of sweet and adorable contemporary that I want to read, and I would say she did it once again with Lucky in Love.

Maddie is the girl I would be friends with. Nerdy and sort of awkward, but super dedicated to her friends and family. This girl had laser focus, and worked hard towards things that were important to her. I loved her quirks, and kept hoping for a world of great things for her.

Maddie actually reminded me of my younger self. She was making all these pre-lottery choices, which were not the best choices for her. She was constantly compromising her own needs for the needs of others. She was me back when I was a pleaser. Yes, I used to care more about making other people happy than making myself happy, and Maddie was also suffering from this affliction. Her condition only got worse when she won the lottery. She had some sort of winner's guilt, and thought that if she threw enough money at the problem, it would disappear. Eventually, she lived and learned, and came out better for it on the other side.

I really liked that West included the good and the bad parts of the lottery win, because it happens. We read about it all the time. Don't worry though, this is a West book, so it's not going to be a downer. West also allowed Maddie to enjoy her money in some really fun ways. And although Maddie was betrayed by some "friends", she had a few who stood by her with no monetary expectations.

One thing I wanted more of in this book was Zoo Seth. I loved this kid. He was the opposite of Maddie. Where she was all focus and control, he was loose and easy. I liked that they balanced each other out, and Seth was just such a sweetheart. He played it close to the vest for a good part of the book, but when he finally declared his intentions towards Maddie, well, it was a total aww-cute moment. He followed this up with some really sweet gestures, and then a reveal that was very telling.

What can I say? This was another solid read from Kasie West. She is an author I can always depend upon to make me smile and bring me happiness with her super-cute, heartfelt tales. And as I always say: if she writes it, I will read it.

**I would like to thank the publisher for the advanced copy of this book.







Maddie works at a zoo and her favorite animal is coincidently MY favorite animal! Yes, we love anteaters. 

Do you have a favorite zoo animal?
Let us know in the comments!

17 comments:

  1. This is one of my most anticipated books, so I am so glad to hear you enjoyed it so much. It sounds absolutely fantastic! Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous review! <3

    ~ Zoe @ Stories on Stage

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    1. I have never been disappointed by West. Even my favorite West book made me happy. I hope you love it!

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  2. This sounds like a really cute story. I have only read one Kasie West book but do hope to read more. Knowing my daughter this book will eventually find a home on our bookshelves.

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    1. It was cute, as expected. I just wanted more of the romance (of course)

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  3. This sounds absolutely adorable! The "winning the lottery doesn't pan out like you'd think" plot line reminds me of The Fortunes of Indigo Skye by Deb Caletti, which I loved. Zoo Seth sounds very cute, so that makes me want to read it even more!

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    1. The problem was not enough Seth, but still cute nonetheless. I have been wanting to try a Caletti book, but I didn't know where to start. Maybe Indigo Skye would be a good one.

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  4. This sounds like a really fun read! I'm interested to see how the lottery aspect plays out. Seems like the main character will act like how I might in the same situation! "Winner's guilt"...

    Oh, and my fave zoo animal is probably penguin?

    Cass @ Words on Paper

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    1. Penguins are awesome. My sister loves them so much, instead of the traditional bride and groom statues, she had bride and groom penguins at her wedding. She's quirky. I think the collective we think a windfall would solve all our problems, and it's lottery stories that really challenge that idea.

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  5. Aw, Seth sounds absolutely adorable. I'm glad this was another win for you! My favorite zoo animal? Penguins!

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. He was adorable. I liked the way he let his true feelings be known. It was so aww-cute

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  6. I don't even need a cover or a synopsis to add a Kasie West book to my TBR. I have such a solid love of her, and yes, I though Seth was pretty awesome.

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  7. So glad to see how much you enjoyed this one! Like you, I really love Kasie West and I'm excited for this one. She creates such flawed characters and allows them to grow in a realistic way. I'm hoping to start this one next week. Can't wait to meet Maddie and Seth!

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    1. Not my favorite, but still a cute read. I am never disappointed when I read a West book

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  8. I've been avoiding West's books lately as they just haven't sounded like hits to me and I was kind of thinking of missing this one so hearing you say positive things about this one makes me think I should reconsider. Great review, thanks for making me reconsider this read.

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    1. Even when it's not her best book, it has always entertained me and left me feeling happy. I guess it depends on what you are looking for. Generally, I am looking for an escape. I don't really want anything too realistic or sad, and I want an HEA. Most of the time, those books work for me. If I had to choose between her last two releases, I liked By Your Side slightly more, but I think it's because I wanted more of the romance in this one. With that said, once Seth stepped up to the plate, he totally won me over.

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  9. I preordered this one and can't wait to get it. I just kind of skimmed your review as a result though because I want to go in not knowing too much. Saw you mentioned you wanted more of the love interest and that's actually how I usually feel about her books. I would be over the moon if she ever decided to write a book with dual perspectives in this regard. So excited for this one!

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    1. West falls into that category of writers like Dessen, who are I love and always enjoy, but they are not really writing a full on romance. I only say that, because there is always some family/coming-of-age issue that is really front and center and the romance is peripheral to that. Still, cute, sweet, made my heart sing and all that good stuff, entertaining, and I have no regrets spending time reading this one.

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