When Lexi wins the lottery, she knew their lives would change. However, it tore apart their marriage and their friends marriages as everyone fights over the winnings. There is an orgy of spending by some, money given away without taking to each other, and so many secrets going on. The people are so selfish and nasty that you won't be sad if they don't keep the money. Then her daughter is kidnapped and everything is turned upside down again. The story goes from being about a bunch of dysfunctional people you don't like into a pacey thriller that has done great twists and turns. Persist with it, the last part is worth it!

Lovely tale of how you should be happy with your lot!
3 couples who've been friends for years and still spend a lot of time with each other, dinner parties 3 times a month, their children very close and playing the weekly lottery syndicate that they've never won, have a falling out. Harsh words are said and the syndicate busts up, well wouldn't you believe it, the numbers come up next week and Jake and Lexi win £18 million pounds. Obviously, the other two couples want their share but it won't be a clean fight, not even Jake and Lexi can agree on how to spend it.
An excellent portrayal of greed and selfishness all the characters have an ugly streak some more than others, the children are great, super bitchy girls and carefree boys. The couples show the most hideous sides of themselves in order to become rich. The plot moves quickly and the secrets and lies of the past are un-earthed to prove karma really is a bitch! 
Overall, a great little read which I can see as a beatiful Kay Mellor short series, be happy with what you have as money doesn't fix everything!

Thanks to HQ and NetGalley for the ARC

Overall I liked this book. The storyline reaches into those dreams we all have. How would life change after a big lotto win? Life certainly changes quickly for lexi and jake after a multi million pound jackpot. 

Of course things certainly don’t run smoothly and the couple and their children find that the money comes with some big drawbacks. 

I was quite gripped by this and, taking it at face value, it was an enjoyable read. There were, however, a couple of sticking points for me... firstly, I didn’t really like or empathise with any of the characters. Secondly, the plot was bizarre and the sudden plot developments were a bit jarring. 

I would recommend this as long as you can completely suspend reality! 

I have reviewed this book honestly in exchange for an ARC from Netgalley.

I enjoyed this book although I found parts a teeny bit slow, A story about how winning a life changing amount of money can not always be a good thing and that it can also affect relationships.

A great page-turner, I read the whole thing in one day. I like a book with alternative perspective chapters and this didn’t disappoint. Problem after problem faced by the characters following their big lottery win, all had me hooked. I liked how the author was able to alternate between ‘sensible’ adult narrative and that of a teenage girl, and although I managed to guess most of the major plot points before the big reveals, this didn’t hinder my enjoyment. Would recommend.

Just My Luck by @adele_parks . Published by @hqstories 🤞
She has done it again. Adele has such a wonderful talent for writing such great books. 
This offering is no different 🤞
The saying goes money is the root to all evil- also money can do funny things to folk.
🤞
Lexi & Jake have been playing the same lottery numbers with their friends for over 15 years. Sadly without any real success. Then one weekend a disagreement between them . The syndicate appears to be broken. 🤞
Jake continues to play the lottery and theirs numbers come up and win £18million. 
This all happens a week after the disagreement.
Will Jake & Lexi share the winnings?????
🤞
The story is much more than just money. It take you though effects money can have on relationships.
🤞
Betrayal ,secrets and so much more.
🤞
The plot works brilliantly it’s classic Adele Parks.
🤞
Thank you @hqstories for sending me a copy of this book
🤞
Out Now
🤞

#justmyluck #adeleparks #bookcommunity #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #booklover #bookobsessed #bookaddict #booksbooksbooks #bookreader #bookrecommendations #bookreviewer #reader #reading #readersofinstagram #readingtime #readingisfun

When I read that synopsis I knew I just had to get my hand on this book & I’m so glad I did! The cover is so inviting and bright and makes me want to lay by the pool sipping cocktails. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to win the lottery and this book really shows how money can change people & really puts things into perspective. I couldn’t read it quick enough, it’s fast paced and filled to the brim with unexpected twists and turns. You definitely won’t regret purchasing this book, get it in your basket!😍📚 ⠀⠀

‘Just My Luck’ is the current ’Sunday Times’ number 1 bestseller by Adele Parks.

For fifteen years, Lexi and Jake have played the same six numbers with their friends, the Pearsons and the Heathcotes. Over dinner parties, fish & chip suppers and summer barbecues, they’ve discussed the important stuff – the kids, marriages, jobs and houses – and they’ve laughed off their disappointment when they failed to win anything more than a tenner. But then, one Saturday night, the unthinkable happens. There’s a rift in the group. Someone doesn’t tell the truth. And soon after, six numbers come up which change everything forever. Lexi and Jake have a ticket worth £18 million. And their friends are determined to claim a share of it.

2020 marks Adele Parks being an author for the 20 years and her latest book ‘Just My Luck’ is her twentieth book which I revealed on publication day is being optioned for screen.

The story is seen primarily through the narrative of Lexi, after years of doing the lottery, finally her lucky numbers come through. Up until the winning ticket, Lexi and her husband Jake, took part in a syndicate with their friends Carla, Patrick, Jennifer and Fred until the four of them decided that doing the lottery was common. Now £18,000,000 richer, the friends decide they are owed what they feel is rightfully theirs. So instead of being able to enjoy the excitement of being millionaires, Lexi and her family discover the how much of a disastrous effect coming into money can have on people’s lives.

I read this book in two sittings purely because Adele is one of my favourite authors and plus the story was just so addictive. Seen from the narrative of Lexi, a quiet woman who’s primary concern is her family, she’s refused to be swept away by the madness of winning the lottery unlike her husband Jake, who’s throwing money left, right and centre. She wants to be sensible with the money and put it to good use and charitable needs whilst Jake would prefer to rub it in everyone’s faces. She’s hurt when their friends demand that they are owed money even though they backed out of the syndicate. There’s also narrative from her husband Jake and her teenage children. The multiple narratives give an interesting insight to how money can influence and change people’s lives and not for the best.

Now a Sunday Times number 1 bestselling book, ‘Just My Luck’ is Adele at her finest. With short chapters that really grip the readers attentions from the exciting moment of discovering those lucky numbers, to the twisted reveal at the final page, this book was a riveting rollercoaster of a story. A story filled with suspense and drama that explores the dynamic of relationships and the challenges faced new found wealth is bestowed upon them, ‘Just My Luck’ is compelled and well crafted story that is relatable and triggers the question, would we change if we won the lottery?

You can buy ‘Just My Luck’ from Amazon and will be availble to buy from good bookshops.

Check out my interview with Adele Parks catching up with the excitement of publication day as well as life in lockdown.

This was very good, with so much of it just really unexpected so you never really knew where the story was going. Written extremely well with great characters that really fitted great with the story. I loved it.

Just My Luck was advertised as a twisty thriller about secrets and friendships gone wrong. The whole winning-the-lottery concept was what sold me, but I wholeheartedly believe that maybe this book could have fared a lot better without the lottery gimmick as it got tired very quickly. The characters obsessed over every facet of the lottery win, I was subjected to reading detached, cold meetings with lawyers and odd third-person narratives every now and then about the reactions of characters I couldn’t care less about. 

Whilst practically none of the characters in this novel are likeable, they are interesting. Toma, who was by far my favourite character by a longshot, was sympathetic and my heart ached for him. Our main narrator, Lexi, however, had less backbone than a jellyfish, and her daughter, secondary narrator Emily, spoke in a tone that was painfully obviously written by an adult trying her very best to sound like a teenager. The assassination of Emily’s character was actually quite insulting to young teenage girls everywhere.

When Parks is focusing on the thriller aspect of the novel, it is genuinely terrifying. I didn’t sleep for an entire night after a particularly harrowing scene that made me feel very unsafe in my own home. I wouldn’t read this at night, and I certainly wouldn’t read home alone. I have to commend Adele Parks for scaring me out of my wits during this novel. Honestly.

The problem, however, is that the book often seems to forget that it’s a thriller, and when we’re following the day-to-day lives of our narrators, stuff starts to get very boring very quickly. The story ends up accelerating until the end, but you have to trudge through a whole lot of boring before it starts to get consistently exciting. 

The characters put me off this book, as well as the unneeded lottery-logistics that are peppered in at every turn. However, the plot and subplots that fall in line with the genre are genuinely good and pleasantly cohesive. The concept and skeleton of the plot are good, but overall, the book could have been executed a lot better.

I'm usually a huge fan of Adele Parks' books, but this one, if I had read this as the first of her books, would've put me off her writing forever! While the story flowed somewhat, there wasn't anything really compelling to carry my attention throughout (the Toma angle was nice, though). Having the chapters jumping timeline every so often also made this a jumble, and the twists and turns, though often over the top and unrealistic, well, you could suspend disbelief for them a tad. What really gutted me was the final chapter, which made me want to throw the book at the wall (didn't coz it would've broken the tablet I was reading on!) but it just makes you go, What was the point? So all this was just lies and posturing all along? And I invested so much of my time in this story for THIS??? 
The ending totally killed it for me, making me wonder if I'll be as ecstatic as before to ever pick up an Adele Parks book again

I enjoyed Just My Luck. We’ve all wondered what we would do if we won the lottery, I certainly have, Just My Luck is just that book. Be very careful what you wish for. A fab read.

Well, it just goes to show that money is the root of all evil. Greed, jealousy and envy are all in abundance when Lexi and Jake win 17. 8 million on the lottery. Money changes everyone. Plenty of tension, twists and turns. Recommended.

Everyone dreams of winning the lottery! The plans, the Hope's, the dreams. But what would that really be like? How would you spend it?
Lexi and Jake win £17.8 million on the lottery. The lottery that they have played as part of a syndicate for years. However the week before the big win, the others in the syndicate pulled out. What timing! As the family come to terms with winning that huge amount of money, how do others react? 
Begging letters, threats, high hopes. 
What will the reality be?
This books has so many twists and turns, most of which I didn't see coming at all. The book is very well written and I enjoyed it very much. It will keep you gripped until the final sentence! I highly recommend this book

I received an ARC of this book via netgalley and HQ. I liked the multiple points of view and I felt the author created the aftermath of winning the lottery well. However there were parts of the narrative which were really slow endless shopping etc etc. Towards the end the narrative is really drawn together and I selected and discarded several perpetrators. I was eventually set on the at least one of the right ones there was too much concorde in some of the storylines for it to be anyone else. The final twist however was totally unexpected and altered entirely my view of the characters involved.

Adele Parks gives the reader a solid and enjoyable read I would certainly rate it more than just Ok.  I can see a wide reading public that would enjoy this book

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Lexi and Jake win massively on the lottery - the week before the numbers come up their friends another two couples pull out - so the money is all theirs. What follows is a story of bitterness, friendships being ruined, childhoods no longer innocent. Their marriage no longer what they thought it was. Just goes to show money really doesn't buy happiness. Would say one of the best books I have read by Adele Parks

This is the first book of Adele Parks that I’ve read. It started off well with the lottery win and the story of whether of not two of the three couples had left the lottery syndicate. 

It showed how life can change for lottery winners but I felt, although it was easy reading, it didn’t have that mystery within the writing. The twist with Emily could have been a bit more gripping. 

Overall, an easy read which I enjoyed. The twist at the end was what prompted me to push it to three out of five stars. 
 
Thanks for Netgalley for the opportunity to read it in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book. It was well written, and even though some of the characters weren't terribly sympathetic the story was engaging enough to keep me interested. And it's validated my plans to never tell a single soul if I win big.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

I am a long time fan of Adele Parks and this book does not disappoint. I would recommend it to any fans of hers

Brilliant.  I am a fan of Adele Parks, although she is an author that I have only recently discovered.

I was immediately drawn in by the cover, which gives brilliant summer vibes.  The story is great and actually very believable.  What would you do if you won the lottery and how would it affect the relationships you had with those around you?  

A brilliant and thought-provoking read.