I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun book. I loved the small town setting!

Very intriguing, engaging, quirky and an enjoyable adventure to experience.
This book had so many layers to it, it’s an easy read but the different topics touched really resonate with you.

It’s overall a nice read.
Eliza is incredibly relatable and I enjoyed this book!
I will definitely read more by this author!


Thank you Netgalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for giving me this ARC.

When Eliza’s carefully planned life falls apart at 32, she leaves San Francisco, and her broken engagement, behind for a fresh start in the small town of Juneberry Lake. Trading city life for a lake house and a remote job, she finds unexpected charm, a cozy coffee shop, and a new connection with fellow newcomer Joel. As Eliza settles in, a town secret and the support of new friends help her realize that life’s detours might just lead to the future she truly wants.

Thanks Avon and NetGalley for the gifted DRC book.

Like Dear Dotty, Lucky Break is a novel about finding yourself and also includes an adorable dog (this one is named Potato).

Embracing lake life in a small town, this women’s fiction combines low-stakes mystery with a light romantic subplot to explore themes of grief, community, second chance, found family, and infertility (which was handled with care). It’s largely character-driven – vibes over plot – with a slower pace that fits the lake life feeling of relaxing by or on the water while reading. I felt a bit confused about the genre as it doesn’t neatly fit into any given category, though at the same time I was completely unbothered by this.

Something I appreciate about the way Westlake writes characters in this and her prior book is that people have bodily autonomy. There are characters with children and characters without, all of whom are valued. There’s no push of the “must get married and pop out kids in order to fulfill life’s purpose” narrative. It’s fantastic to read.

Dear Dotty remains my favorite, though Lucky Break was still an enjoyable read fitting for summer.

Highly recommend reading this book next to a lake in Minnesota!

I picked this up on a whim for my summer vacation and it was everything I needed in a vacation book! The characters were fun, the mystery and suspense had me on my toes, and I enjoyed the romance too. I will be going back to read Jaclyn's first book ASAP!

Thanks to the publisher for an advance copy!

My Ratings:
🧍🏽‍♀️ 5/5 Characters
🌶️ 2/5 Spice
🎬 4/5 Ending
🧩 4.5/5 Plot
💫 4/5 Overall

I really loved this book. Jaclyn Westlake has become one of my new favorite authors. I hope she keeps writing! I became so invested in Eliza and her family and was on the edge of my chair wondering where this story would take me. Turns out I went with her on a new adventure, not just a new place to live, but a new chosen family of friends. You won't want to miss this second novel by this fantastic author.

Thanks to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Cute and engaging. The secrets of the neighbors kept me guessing until the end! I really enjoyed this and will look forward to more from this author!

With so much suffering going on in the world, Lucky Break by Jaclyn Westlake was the warm hug I needed. It has everything I could ask for: a compelling mystery that kept me turning pages, a dash of romance with a total sweetheart, and a three-legged dog I would die for. As someone who's childfree-by-choice, I also appreciated the book's honest, nuanced conversations around infertility and living a life that doesn't go according to society's plan. Lucky Break is the perfect cozy read of the summer!

I loved this women's fiction story that's set in a midwestern lake town. I read it at my cabin in the Wisconsin Northwoods, which only elevated my reading experience!

Eliza was a likable FMC and I appreciated her journey of re-discovering herself and rebuilding after a breakup. I loved all of the neighbor dynamics Eliza had to navigate, and there was even a little bit of a mystery for her to solve!

I did want more from the romance--I didn't really feel romantic vibes between Eliza and Joel. But I did love their friendship and how it slowly grew into something more.

LUCKY BREAK is a feel-good, small town story with interesting characters. I'm excited to hear Jaclyn explain her writing process when she comes to town!

I absolutely adored this read, as someone in their 30's I loved getting to read about someone reinventing their life and finding themselves outside of their comfort zone! While reading it I loved it so much I preordered it. Its a very cozy read with some tough subjects well faced. I encourage this read to anyone and cant wait to read more from this author!

Lucky Break is a great summer book! Thanks to Avon for my copy of this book that came out yesterday!

When Eliza's perfectly planned life implodes she's second-guessing everything and on a whim moves to a small Midwestern lake town - Juneberry Lake and finds that maybe moving to this small town will change her life.

Juneberry Lake was such a cute town! Her neighbors were great and I loved trying to see what secret they were hiding and why. I like books about people starting over and this book had a lot of deeper aspects to it.

In the email from the publisher, it mentioned big themes of starting over, heartbreak and living a child-free life. That aspect was interesting to me as someone who chose not to have kids and while that storyline was different from what I expected of failed IVF and coming to terms with a different life than you planned for and the emotional aspect, especially with your partner. I'm impressed with how the author included this sensitive topic and I thought that added a lot of emotional depth to the book.

This book is the perfect mix of a fun summer book with emotional depth with a great setting and would be great to read at the lake!

Thank you to Book Club Girl and Avon and Harper Voyager for this complimentary ARC copy (both physical and digital through Netgalley) of Lucky Break by Jaclyn Westlake.

Eliza’s perfectly planned and impeccably curated (and perhaps slightly neurotic) life has just fallen apart—what better thing to do next than buy a lakeside house sight-unseen in a small town and try to start anew? It’s definitely not a one-third life crisis, not when it means new friends, new revelations, and maybe even a new love…

Full of heartwarming yet complicated characters and a cheerful small town vibe similar to the Dream Harbor series (just a little more realistic), Lucky Break makes for an easy, calming, low-maintenance read—even if the main character, Eliza, can be a little high-maintenance at times.

For the amount of little plot twists threaded throughout this story, Lucky Break could possibly be considered a “cozy mystery,” just like the books the main character loves so much. Personally, I sussed out the “twists” very early on, but that just means they make sense and were hinted at well.

This is advertised as “summer in a book.” It’s also a story of self-love and learning to overcome obstacles on your own. If any of that is what you’re looking for, give Lucky Break a try.

CW: infertility, infidelity

I really enjoyed this book. It was lighthearted and takes place in a cozy, mysterious new town for the main character. This was the perfect read for the summer and the characters are very likable. I love a setting in a small town and the found family trope is one of my favorites. I would definitely recommend this if you’re looking for a quick and easy read.

This book is so poorly written that it was an immense struggle to finish, The characters are one-dimensional and the plot is loaded with holes that is it almost impossible to finish.

Thank you Netgalley and to Avon & Harper Voyager as well as the author for providing me with this ARC, in exchange for my honest review.

slow burn x friends to lovers x small town romance. I enjoyed that this book had FMC my age, sometimes gets old reading about characters in early 20s. It was interesting to read the FMCs story of coming to terms of with her inability to have children as well as struggles with her autistic brother. I love the small town vibes, always do in a book (and in real life). However it was a bit slow for my liking. Overall a good book.

I adored this lovely, coming into her own, starting over romance so much. The writing style is full of fun humor and delivered with a quick wit. The story has a lot of great characters, but especially the sweetest brother and I fell a bit in love with Enzo, in a platonic sisterly kind of way, by the end of the book. Eliza is a plucky, courageous heroine that is determined to find her way after a breakup and you can't help but love her and her wonderful Italian family too. I also enjoyed the lake town setting and it was described perfectly . The audiobook is narrated by Amanda Ronconi and I loved the life she brought to this amazing romantic comedy.

It was good. Kind of dragged a little for me but it was still good. I’m interested to see her other books and what she writes.

Eliza’s life just fell apart so she takes a leap and leaves San Francisco for a fresh start in a quiet Midwestern lake town. What she finds is a charming community, a hidden secret, real friendship, and maybe even love. The slower pace gives her space to reflect and the people around her help her see her past and herself in a whole new way. As she settles into her unexpected new life she begins to question everything she thought she wanted. The mystery unfolding in town adds just the right amount of intrigue without losing the heart and warmth of the story. Heartfelt, cozy, and quietly surprising, this is a perfect read for anyone craving a feel-good escape with emotional depth and a touch of romance.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free advanced copy!

Eliza is a planner. She has plotted the perfect career path, the perfect husband, and the perfect 2.5 children. Which actually doesn't work out at all for her. At the book's beginning, she is breaking up with her boyfriend when she notices an advertisement for a tiny Minnesota lake town. They are offereing $10,000 to young professionals who will locate to lovely Lake Juneberry and buy a home. She takes the plunge, hoping for a do-over and a better life. Readers will love Eliza as she takes a chance on life and love.

A book an about new beginnings and how you can’t plan your life because it’s unpredictable. I honestly thought this was going to be less women’s fiction and more romance. I thought the Erica storyline was kind of dumb. It didn’t serve a real purpose. But I did like Joel.