Book Review: Lucky Girl by Jamie Pacton

Publisher’s description

A hilarious and poignant reflection on what money can and cannot fix

58,642,129. That’s how many dollars seventeen-year-old Fortuna Jane Belleweather just won in the lotto jackpot. It’s also about how many reasons she has for not coming forward to claim her prize.

Problem #1: Jane is still a minor, and if anyone discovers she bought the ticket underage, she’ll either have to forfeit the ticket, or worse . . .

Problem #2: Let her hoarder mother cash it. The last thing Jane’s mom needs is millions of dollars to buy more junk. Then . . .

Problem #3: Jane’s best friend, aspiring journalist Brandon Kim, declares on the news that he’s going to find the lucky winner. It’s one thing to keep her secret from the town — it’s another thing entirely to lie to her best friend. Especially when . . .

Problem #4: Jane’s ex-boyfriend, Holden, is suddenly back in her life, and he has big ideas about what he’d do with the prize money. As suspicion and jealousy turn neighbor against neighbor, and no good options for cashing the ticket come forward, Jane begins to wonder: Could this much money actually be a bad thing?

Amanda’s thoughts

When Jane realizes she holds the winning ticket to a massive lottery ($58 million), it should maybe seem like her path forward is obvious: CASH THAT THING! But she’s only 17, so it’s both illegal for her to cash it and to have bought it in the first place. She might be able to find someone she trusts over 18 to pass it off to—they could cash it, maybe split some of the money—but it’s not just that simple. Every option seems fraught with lots of drawbacks, especially her most obvious option, her mother, who’s a hoarder. Jane can just picture her burying their already crowded house in more STUFF with access to that kind of money. And then there’s the fact that Jane’s been looking into the lives of other lottery winners and discovering that many of them become full of drama and tragedy after cashing their winning ticket. OH, and her best friend, Bran, is leading the charge for trying to track down who the winner is while the entire town gossips and speculates while they wait for the winner to come forward.

This is a short and fast-paced read, with Jane’s many hesitations bringing so much depth to the story of “girl wins lottery.” I love her friendship with Bran, her thoughtfulness, and what she ultimately ends up doing. I am also now the founder of the I Hate [NAME REDACTED] club. Go read the book—I bet you’ll have no problem realizing who I am talking about and joining me. Pacton does a great job of drawing out this will-she-or-won’t-she story and giving readers plenty to think about as Jane struggles with what to do. Short, sweet, and satisfying.

Review copy (ARC) courtesy of the publisher

ISBN-13: 9781645672081
Publisher: Page Street Publishing
Publication date: 05/11/2021
Age Range: 14 – 17 Years

Filed under: Uncategorized