The gory chaos sequences were awesome. Also very much loved the pointed repetition of (and attention drawn to) biphobia and bi erasure by both straight and gay characters - with the added existentialism of “maybe I DONT exist”.

But honestly the cosmic horror elements didn’t really work with me. The big bad at the end was a little too human (and of course fell into the trap of my least favorite villains and had the villain monologue)

Also heads up the cat dies

This book was a wild ride. We're following Vera after surviving something called a 'Low Probability Event' occurs, which ended with her mother, and millions of other people, dead. Four years after this tragedy, Vera is a shut in living in her mother's home. One day, a government agent named Layne, knocks on Vera's home and the two team up to try uncovering a connection between the event and a casino in Vegas.

This book was somehow incredible and ridiculous at the same time. I've read Bury Your Gays by this author so I kind of knew what to expect, but I was still surprised by how off the rails this went. The pacing was a little strange at parts, but the ending really redeemed it. I listened primarily to the audiobook and I really enjoyed the narration. The accents were done well and I could understand when different people were speaking.

If you liked weird, apocalyptic books with a side of statistics and angsty queer characters, then I'd recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan for this ALC!

(3.5 stars rounded up)

Hey Chuck, super quick question for you: what the actual fuck? (Complimentary)

This book is a glorious combination of Final Destination, Nope, and Everything, Everywhere, All At Once and I love it. Chuck Tingle just gets better and better with each book I read from him. I admit I was a Chuck Tingle novice when I read Camp Damascus so I didn’t get the vision. I started to get it with Bury Your Gays and now with Lucky Day I’m a full on buckaroo.

I also will admit I went into this not really knowing what the plot would bring and now having read the book I have to say that I don’t really know what I read, but I know it was beautiful. What I mean is, to me, the actual plot takes a backseat to Vera’s emotional journey. I will warn readers now, while I love the ending of this book (may in fact still be crying because it was so touching), I will tell you Vera is in a really rough emotional place for a lot of the book and struggles with SI much of the time. It might be hard to read if you’re in a similar headspace. It’s a lot of nothing matters before Vera realizes nothing matters. If you’ve watched EEAAO, this sentence makes sense to you. If you’ve haven’t, idk, sorry you hate good cinema, I guess.

I also really struggled with the dead cat scene. Yes, a cat dies and yes you better believe I’m going to talk about my dead cat again. But this is about my reading experience, not yours, so hush. I was full on going to rate this 4 stars because I don’t really enjoy animal deaths and I am especially sensitive to animal deaths now that my own beautiful boy has passed away, call me sensitive. But I have to give it to Chuck, he really transformed the whole scene and I appreciate it. I won’t give the ending away because like I said, it’s just so achingly beautiful and I will say that it all made sense and came together at the end. At least with the cat, there was some other stuff that I don’t think stuck the landing as well but I also don’t think that it was supposed to so I’ll give it a pass. Again, it’s not really about the plot itself, it’s very much about Vera. In my opinion anyway.

I also must shoutout the narrator for the audiobook, who I believe is THE Mara Wilson. A good narrator really makes or breaks an audiobook and Mara really nailed it.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a free audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Somehow both heartfelt and absolutely bonkers. Like Looney Tunes meets Final Destination, but sweet. At this point I’ll read anything Chuck Tingle puts out.

Thanks to Tor Nightfire, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for an early audio copy.

Chuck Tingle is 3/3 for writing absolute bangers (with Tor). I’m blown away. This is the first time in a LONG time where I couldn’t put a physical book down. Genuinely impressed given my own struggles lately.

This book was a roller coaster of whimsical bad luck. This story is absurd and fascinating and I loved every second of it. Tingle captures the reality of deafening depression while also showing how trauma can affect people differently. All while being both silly and goofy!! And absolutely horrific!!

The story follows a bisexual statistics professor who, after experiencing the worst day ever, convinces herself she doesn’t exist.

This book is fast-paced, edge of your seat, existential horror with a heaping of gore, somehow also feel good story I think everyone should try out.

Thank you Macmillan Audio and Tor Nightfire for the ARC!!

Lucky Day is absurd, excellent fun. Props to Chuck Tingle for writing about at statistician without using too many numbers! This was a unique horror book for me in that I would’ve fit the criteria to become a victim of the low-probability event.

Mara Wilson is back to the Tingleverse as the voice of Vera and she does an absolutely lovely job conveying her annoyance with her mother and her rationality applying statistics to the world.

Chuck Tingle’s mind is spectacular. This book manages to be full of so many ridiculous, absurd moments and also pack a great emotional punch. I loved following Vera as she’s unenthusiastically pulled into Agent Layne’s investigation into how an improbably lucky casino might be responsible for an event where millions of people all died in ridiculously unlikely ways.

The book had so many wonderful explorations of loneliness, invalidation, and feeling like nothing matters. I loved getting to see Vera’s journey throughout the course of the book. It was a lovely emotional backbone to a completely bizarre horror/sci-fi story.

I listened to this on audio and I think that Mara Wilson did an excellent job with the narration, she really brought all the characters to life. Definitely check this book out if you’re a fan of queer horror or stories full of absurdity that also have wonderful character growth.

First of all, that cover! Amazing! This book was a lot of fun. I really love how weird and off the wall Chuck Tingle books are, and this one was no exception. The plot was really unique and creative.
The story was fast paced, and I loved Vera as a character.
The audiobook narrator did an incredible job!


Thank you to Macmillan Audio for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Chuck Tingle makes me question all of my literary preferences; his stories are so absurd and fascinating. Lucky Day is no exception, I think I like all of his books more and more.

Vera is a professor in Chicago, she is engaged to Annie. She tells her mother she is bisexual and introduces her to Annie, her mother spews a bunch of biphobic nonsense; and in the middle of her diatribe, the weirdest shit ever happens. I don’t even want to give anything away, this is where my reading pace slowed down as my inner dialogue went “wait, what?”

Vera runs away from her life, and four years later there is a government entity created to determine how and why 8 million people (including Vera’s mother) all died simultaneously. It definitely has Final Destination vibes, and Vera being a statistics professor we learn different odds of all sorts of things. So the perfect setting is a big casino in Las Vegas.

The book breaks the 4th wall somewhat, and I was hooked from the very beginning. Chuck Tingle is definitely solidified in the Horror genre.

Audiobook review; Mara Wilson was a great narrator. It was well paced and well acted. This book is easy to follow on audio and Wilson turned in a solid performance.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the ARC. Thanks to Macmillan Audio for the ALC. Book to be published August 12, 2025.

This was a wild ride that I can’t even begin to explain without giving things away. This was equal parts weird and strange but also deep and existential. The narration by Mara Wilson was great!!

I have only read Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle and had issues with it. It was mostly the bugs. I couldn’t do it... But when Lucky day was announced I was so excited for it because it sounded like it would be just up my alley. And it was. I loved all the different statistics that got put in the books while it wasn’t random just the random things that were happened in that the statistics just got put in there had me laughing. From beginning to the end and everything in between. This one was a total hit for me. I also liked how Chuck hit the head of the nail how people seem to react to people when they say they are bisexual. It is something I see from my friends and people on social medial when it comes to their sexuality and Chuck really just put it out there. I need to pick up the copy I have of Bury Your Gays immediately now after reading Lucky Day!
When it came to the audiobook Mara Wilson did amazing. And ask Mara did Chuck’s other books. I think that’s how I am going to consume the rest of them and pick up Camp Damascus again. I really liked her pacing and just everything in between when it came to how she narrated the book.
Thank you Macmillan audio for the complimentary audio copy. All thoughts an opinions are my own.

Chuck Tingle just knows how to write a fun story. Of his three traditionally published novels, Lucky Day is probably my least favorite offering of the bunch - but that's of no fault to the writing or the story. It's just a matter of personal taste. Bury Your Gays comes out on top because of the subject matter, and Camp Damascus was a close second for the same reason. That said, this book was still a four star read and something that I was easily able to devour because the pace kept the book moving.

The story is about a bisexual autistic statistics professor who experiences an improbably unlucky day (that ends in the death of millions) and it sends her into isolation. When a federal agent with an organization that sprung up in the aftermath of the low probability day comes to get her help to figure out just what was behind that unlucky day, she tags along on an adventure that helps her get a new lease on life.

I felt like there was a little more depth to his two previous novels that made it edge this one out, but ultimately if you're up for a fun cosmic horror read this is a good one. The audiobook was narrated by Mara Wilson who is quickly becoming one of my favorite narrators out there. She made the book just that much better.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Chuck Tingle for sharing this with me on NetGalley.

It’s MY Lucky Day! Since this book was announced, I have been refreshing the NetGalley feed in hopes that the audiobook would pull through for me. And it did!

I have been a fan of Chuck Tingle long before he was main stream. His imagination, and vivid descriptions over the course of these 3 main stream books has gotten better and better with each release.

Lucky Day is cinematic and visceral, to say the very least. The concept is wild and (one would hope) wholly implausible, and yet, our favorite Buckaroo has pulled it off yet again.

The story starts strong, and has a great hook. I will admit that it does begin to fizzle out a bit in places, but I found the story captivating over all, and would absolutely recommend this one to anyone interested in the genre.

4 stars

I'm so entertained by Chuck Tingle's books, and this is no exception.

You know the beginning of the "Rapture" episode of _Six Feet Under_? Well this book has an initiating event that is just as weird but broader scale, and when the main character, Vera, lives through it, she's understandably changed forever. As a former stats professor, she becomes hooked on the probability of the Low-Probability Event, and her entire life and understanding of the world are thrown into relative chaos. I can relate. I teach college English during the entry point of generative A.I. Why are we even here?

What ensues in this novel is a fascinating study of people's relationship to luck and fate, to agency, and to finding meaning and the will to go on. There are some killer (pun intended) horrors that happen throughout, and there are some bleak situations, but Vera is the perfect guide through all of it.

I enjoyed this, and Mara Wilson's narration of the audiobook adds so much.

Chuck Tingle, renowned for his provocative works like "Bury Your Gays" and "Camp Damascus," triumphs once more with his new novel, “Lucky Day.” This gripping tale unveils a harrowing global Low-Probability Event, where a staggering eight million lives were lost in a series of freak accidents over a single day.

We journey alongside Vera, a dedicated professor of statistics and probability, whose existence is rigidly governed by the laws of chance. However, in the aftermath of this catastrophic event, Vera grapples with a profound existential crisis, spiraling into a nihilistic haze until an unexpected opportunity arises—she is asked to prove order to the chaos.

I had the pleasure of listening to the audiobook, masterfully narrated by Mara Wilson. Her rability to bring a wide array of emotions and experiences makes the story engaging.

This book comes highly recommended. Tingle's horror-laden exploration of low-probability events is a perfect reflection of our times—strangely relatable yet deeply unsettling. Readers are bound to find joy in this hilarious and absurd quest for meaning in the face of overwhelming oblivion.

A heartfelt thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing the ARC.

Chuck Tingle can write sci-fi/horror!!! This book was absolutely amazing! One day there are strange occurrences which lead to deaths, known as the Low Probability Event. Vera, who is a statistics professor, is in an argument with her mother witnesses these events firsthand and it puts her in a depression for about 4 years. Until, a government agent, Layne, happens to need her expertise to help with an investigation into that day. I loved the grumpy (Vera) / sunshine (Layne) dynamic of the two main characters. Mostly, I loved the ideas that Tingle explores about luck, other beings, and even the meaning of life! I am a huge math gal, so I may have nerded out a bit when they go to the casino that seems to be the center of the events, and they talk about probability. I was blown away with Chuck Tingle's knowledge and research of so many ideas in this book!

It’s exactly what you’d expect from Chuck Tingle—and yet somehow more. It’s bizarre, hilarious, and totally off the wall, but underneath the absurdity is a surprisingly heartfelt core. The blend of humor, horror, and commentary is well balanced, and Tingle's signature voice shines through every surreal twist.
While some moments felt intentionally disjointed or overly meta (which won’t be everyone’s cup of tea), the originality and unexpected emotional depth really stood out.
The audiobook narrator was a bit slow but I just upped the speed.