Immediately taken in by a psychological thriller I’ve been excited to read, Stacy Willingham did. Not. Hold. Back.
Characters are developed so intricately with multiple layers pulled apart as the story takes twists and turns like no other. A favorite thriller and so fast-paced, it kept me gripped until the end!

Karissa Vacker is one of my favorite and best narrators. I was spellbound as I listened to Vacker’s voice telling this heart pounding tale.

Thank you, Stacy Willingham, Macmillan Audio, & netgalley for my audiobook! All opinions are my own.

Wow, that was a wild ride! I didn't see that last twist coming at the end! And man was Lucy totally fucked up and creepy!!! This is my 2nd Stacy Willingham book and I am now adding all of her backlog of books to my TBR! I can't wait to see what she puts out next!

Only If You're Lucky is a thriller focused on female friendships during a transformative period in their lives - college. Most of the action has already happened once the book begins, and it feels like not a lot is happening in the current story. That said, not once did it feel slow, and I find myself reading at record speed to see how this was all going to end. I was highly invested in the characters, and love Stacy Willingham's writing! I would highly recommend this tense thriller/mystery.

Stacy Willingham’s latest twisty thriller centers around Margot, who has just started her freshman year at Rutledge University. She was supposed to be there with her best friend Eliza, but Eliza tragically died just weeks before they were supposed to start college.

Still reeling from Eliza’s death, Margot mostly keeps to herself that first year, but when Lucy Sharpe catches her eye and invites her to room with her and two other friends. Margot can’t resist the opportunity for a fresh start and moves into house, which is adjacent to and owned by a fraternity. Everything starts out fine for Margot until she runs into Levi, Eliza’s former boyfriend and the one Margot has always suspected had something to do with Eliza’s death.

Margot confesses her suspicions and her unease to her roommates and soon after, Levi turns up dead and Lucy goes missing. Margot doesn’t know who she can trust and the story suddenly spirals into a series of secrets, lies, betrayals, and toxic friendships.

The story started out as somewhat of a slow burn, but the pace dramatically picks up at the halfway mark and the second half is filled with unpredictable twists and turns. I flew through that second half on the edge of my seat waiting to see how all of the pieces would eventually fall into place.

Thanks for the gifted copy of the audiobook, @macmillanaudio. Karissa Vacker narrated the audiobook and did a wonderful job capturing both the suspense and the emotion of the story.

Only If You’re Lucky is perfect for fans of twisty psychological thrillers and dark academia. Available now!

🎆Only If You’re Lucky by Stacy Willingham🎆

Thank you Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the audiobook!

Stacy Willingham has been an auto read for me the last two years, so when I saw she had a new one out I immediately added it to my list!

Margot is a college student who hasn’t found her way freshman year yet. She is infatuated with Lucy, another girl at school who has a magnetic energy. But when Lucy asks Margot to move in to an off campus house with them, it seems perfect… new friends, parties, and the typical college experience. That is until Lucy goes missing and one of the frat boys that lives next door is murdered.

I love a good thriller and this has all the aspects of one! Flashbacks, not having all the information, surprises, and a who done it. I just wish I connected to the characters better, especially the other two girls Margot was friends with. All in all it was a good read!
4 out of 5 ✨

This suspense/thriller/mystery had me hooked from the beginning, there were so many questions I needed answered. What happened to Eliza? What happened to Levi? What did Levi do? What did Lucy do? What did Trevor do? As the story unfolded, all of my questions were answered and most were not what I expected. I enjoy Stacy Willingham's stories, especially the audio version when the narration is so well done. If you enjoy suspense/thrillers and authors like Wendy Walker, Megan Goldin, and Jennifer Hillier to name a few, you will want to add this book and this author to your list.

The book begins with one of the college roommates disappeared, a young frat boy dead, and the police investigating. Then, we have to go back about 2 years, where the story actually begins. Most of the book, honestly, does not feel like a mystery, but instead a story of a young girl getting over the death of her best friend and then settling into college and forming a new circle of friends. A young man from main character Margo’s past shows up at college, and one of her roommates is odd, mysterious. Do we trust this new girl in Margo’s life? What are the secrets they all hold? There are several stories being told here, in intertwining chapters, and how they come together only really becomes totally clear towards the end. This book brought back lots of memories for 52 yr old me, of moving into my first apartment with friends, going to classes, going to parties, waking up hungover, lol. Thankfully, none of my circle back then was as deceptive as these characters! I might not have lived to tell my story! Very good book, excellent character development, but I wish there was more clues throughout that left me on the edge of my seat.

Reeling from the loss of her best friend, Margot stumbles into college life and is soon swept up in the world of the charismatic Lucy. But Lucy isn't exactly what she seems, and college is full of unexpected dangers. This book is an exploration of the chunk of life when we discover who we are and what we are capable of doing. Told in a dual timeline, we get to glimpse Margot while she goes through the events leading up to losing her best friend, paralleled with the current-day events that are turning her world upside down. We, the readers, discover who Margot is right alongside her. A boy is dead and Lucy is missing. Who is to blame? Who is keeping secrets?

Starting very slowly, this book didn't pick up the pace until there was about a third left. The slow burn lulls the reader into thinking that we can't possibly be about to fall down the hill of the rollercoaster that is the end of this book. I agree with other reviews that this has a younger adult feel, but as it's mainly about some very young people just becoming adults, I can see how that makes sense. There was a tense and anxious vibe throughout that I enjoyed. I could feel the awkward and difficult interactions and stress of just getting started in life as I was reading this. It had a very different feel than previous books by this author, but it was also a very different age group and setting, so I think that makes sense. All in all, I had a good time reading this. I wanted to keep reading to know what would happen next and I enjoyed being along for the ride.

The narration worked well with the story and created a tense atmosphere. There were a few times that I felt the voices were playing a bit young for the story, but overall I think the goal was to have them sound innocent and new to adulthood. The pauses used in the narration helped to add to the creepy times in the story. Overall, the voice acting enhanced instead of detracting from the story, which is the goal.

A thriller fit for adults and YA, alike, combining friendship and jealousy.
Margot is attending a small college in South Carolina when she meets the magnetic Lucy Sharpe at the end of her freshman year. Together, they move into a house with two other girls, right next to a rambunctious fraternity house. Margot is finding her footing in college as she overcomes the loss of her best friend Eliza just weeks after graduation. When someone connected to the both of them moves into the fraternity next door, things quickly get complicated. However, things turn dangerous when a fraternity brother is found brutally murdered and the Lucy is missing with no one knowing where she's gone.
I liked this but found the jumps in time hard to follow at times. Narration was very well done though.
Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I previously loved this author’s first two books and while this was different than those - more dark academia, I still enjoyed it! The past and present timelines were easy to follow and I liked how it all cam together in the end. Definitely a few shocking twists I did not see coming. The narrator was fantastic too - one of my favorites!

This book was enjoyable enough to listen to, but it felt a little bit YA for my tastes (even though I know it's not) and parts of it definitely didn't feel believable.

For me, I think my biggest issue was lack of connection to the characters. I really felt for Margot at the beginning of the novel- she recently lost her best friend who was also supposed to be her college roommate. Of course, her first year is going to be rough... And then she meets a group of friends, a girl group led by Lucy. I got bad vibes from Lucy right away and same with the other two in the group. I know that's partly the point, but their friendships just made me feel sad... And seemed a lot more high school than they did college.

Despite that, I did find the first part of the book enjoyable as I was trying to figure out what was going on. Once we learn more about the murder, I lost a bit of interest. I did predict some of the twists, though not all of them. But many just didn't feel believable to me or like something that would actually happen. Also, the fact a bunch of college frat guys were landlords of the house the girls rented? Lol. I understand their fraternity owned the house, but there's no way the actual college guys would be in control of collecting rent, doing repairs, etc. I don't know why this detail bothered me so much, but it did.

In any event, this was a fine listen, but I don't think it will be very memorable for me and certainly won't land on any of my favorites lists.

This was my first Stacy Willingham book but it will certainly not be my last! I give this book a solid 3.75/5 stars. I found this slow burn thriller set in a college town in South Carolina interesting enough that I wanted to keep listening. While I usually love a thriller that gives you bits and pieces until it picked up, I found this one a bit repetitive at times, with the first half of the book taking me much longer to get through than the last part. When the speed picked up, I was in hook, line, and sinker. I loved the twists, and hate to give anything away. There are a list of characters, none of which who I particularly liked; however, that is the case with most thrillers. I do think I will look into her other books, as it seems those are highly regarded as well.

Thanks to NetGalley and the audio publishers for an advanced listening copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this audio book ARC opportunity!

Margo is a college student when she meets Lucy, a friend and roommate she begins to become obsessed with. This is not unlike Margo, as she already had a friend she was obsessed with- Eliza, who died a few weeks after their high school graduation.

Margo spends time with Nicole, Sloane, and the ever adventurous and elusive Lucy, until sophomore year, when one of the fraternity boys next door is murdered, and Lucy is missing.

This story had a YA feel and was quite a slow burn. Had I not known the author to be a good writer (I enjoyed her two previous books) I might not have kept going. The book did pick up halfway through, and I enjoyed it once I was about 75% in. There is a twist, but I feel it could have been revealed sooner, or the story could have been shorter. The narrator pushes this review from 3 to 4 stars. The narrator did a great job of expressing emotion, and making each character sound distinct and interesting. I do wish we got to know the other characters more.

I’d recommend this authors other book, A flicker in the dark over this one, but if you choose to read this book, definitely choose the audio version!

Flicker in the Dark was a top book of 2023 for me. To say I was eagerly anticipating this book would be an understatement. However, I found it really challenging to get into. Despite my high expectations, it fell a bit flat.

Soon after graduating high school, Margo’s best friend Eliza was killed in a tragic accident. She ends up spending her first year away at college depressed & secluded, not making any real friends.

Then Seemingly out of nowhere, popular girl, Lucy asks her to move into the apartment she shares with two other girls. Although they look nothing alike, Lucy constantly reminds Margo of Eliza. Slowly she is brought out of her shell and the four girls become inseparable best friends. But then people from the girls’ past start showing up & one of them is found murdered on the beach after a party. And Lucy has disappeared without a trace.

I listened to the audiobook and the narration was fantastic. It really adds something to the story when the narrator does such great job bringing the characters to life.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing me with a copy of this audiobook.

I absolutely loved Willingham’s “A Flicker in the Dark” and was hoping this one would be as thrilling. Only if You’re Lucky, however, is very much a slow burn thriller. I would honestly call it more of a mystery than a thriller - it did have quite a few crazy twists, but it did not have me on the edge of my seat.

Major stalker vibes from more than one person.

Gives enough character building and back story through the dual timelines that it keeps you interested in the storyline, but again it didn’t give me that “my heart is about to beat out of my chest” thriller feeling.

Thank you to Macmillan audio & NetGalley for an advanced copy and the opportunity to provide an honest review for this one!

This is my third book by Stacy Willingham, and having both the previous books be 5 star reads, I had high hopes for this one.

This is about Margot, who after tragically losing her best friend right before they started college together, feels lost in this new world. She gains the favor of a very popular girl named Lucy. Lucy is someone everyone knows and everyone is intrigued by. Margot is quickly brought into Lucy's world, until someone from her past shows up and things go downhill.

This book was hard for me to get into. There were quite a few characters to keep straight at the beginning and I found my mind wandering off as I listened. About halfway I really wasn't sure I even wanted to finish the book. I didn't care about the whereabouts of Lucy or what really happened to Margot's friend. But I stuck it out...which I am glad I did. I loved how the story wrapped up and the second half really made up for the slow start.

I will definitely read more by Willngham.

Let me start by saying this book is a fun thriller to read (if a thriller could ever be considered "fun"). I definitely had beef with the reasons certain characters died. They were... peripheral characters to the main aggravations of the storyline. I feel like there were definite characters that should have been killed off but weren't killed off.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGally for the opportunity to preview and advanced listening copy of Only If Your Lucky. The opinion's expressed below are my own and this is my honest review.

Overall I enjoyed Stacey Willingham’s newest book, Only If Your Lucky. I previously read and enjoyed A Flicker in the Dark and All The Dangerous Things, so I went into this one with some idea of what I expected, but was surprised to find myself amidst a slow burn thriller, I did enjoy the story overall, but felt as though I were reading a YA/new adult story as opposed to adult fiction and think had I not had my own preconceived notions about what to
expect, I likely would have enjoyed it more. It wasn’t bad, just not what I’d expected. Karissa Vacker is one of my favorite narrators and she did not disappoint. She does a fantastic job bringing the story and characters to life.

After loving her first two novels I was thrilled to listen to Stacy Willingham's "Only If You're Lucky".
This story has a slower pace than the first two and delves into the complexity of friendship, loyalty and betrayal.
Margot attends a small liberal arts school in South Carolina. Her first year is played safe by getting good grades and keeping to herself. Lucy is the exact opposite with an attention grabbing personality. Margot is shocked when Lucy, who she doesn't even know, asks her to room together in an off-campus house. Against her better judgement Margot agrees. They reside with three other girls.
As the year unfolds a murder is committed, someone disappears and secrets are concealed.
Although the story is a slow burn, the surprise ending and having everything neatly tied together make it well worth the listen.
Wonderful narration by Karissa Vacker.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an arc of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.