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Description
Lucky Brilliant is a captivating book about family, friendship, first love, and loss. The novel is perfect for young adults who like mystery-driven dramas, a page-turning tale that reveals surprising twists until the final chapter.
Fifteen-year-old Lucky Brilliant wants to change both the past and the future. After her charming father Chase is murdered for his winning lottery ticket, Lucky learns that he was not the person she thought he was. Chase Brilliant turns out to be a liar and a cheater who leaves Lucky and her mother struggling to survive. When Lucky begins to have psychic dreams that predict the future, she tries to prevent more terrible events from happening.
Best friends Eva, a fashionista, and Silas, a handsome eleventh-grader, help Lucky stay grounded so she can manage her household crisis. Just when life is improving, another shocking secret emerges.
Lucky Brilliant is a captivating book about family, friendship, first love, and loss. The novel is perfect for young adults who like mystery-driven dramas, a page-turning tale that reveals surprising...
Lucky Brilliant is a captivating book about family, friendship, first love, and loss. The novel is perfect for young adults who like mystery-driven dramas, a page-turning tale that reveals surprising twists until the final chapter.
Fifteen-year-old Lucky Brilliant wants to change both the past and the future. After her charming father Chase is murdered for his winning lottery ticket, Lucky learns that he was not the person she thought he was. Chase Brilliant turns out to be a liar and a cheater who leaves Lucky and her mother struggling to survive. When Lucky begins to have psychic dreams that predict the future, she tries to prevent more terrible events from happening.
Best friends Eva, a fashionista, and Silas, a handsome eleventh-grader, help Lucky stay grounded so she can manage her household crisis. Just when life is improving, another shocking secret emerges.
A Note From the Publisher
Maureen Sherbondy is an award-winning writer whose short stories have appeared in The Stone Canoe, The North Carolina Literary Review, The Cortland Review, and other journals. The Slow Vanishing is her short story collection. She has also published nine poetry books. Maureen lives in Durham, North Carolina, with her writer husband and her cat Lola.
Maureen Sherbondy is an award-winning writer whose short stories have appeared in The Stone Canoe, The North Carolina Literary Review, The Cortland Review, and other journals. The Slow Vanishing is...
Maureen Sherbondy is an award-winning writer whose short stories have appeared in The Stone Canoe, The North Carolina Literary Review, The Cortland Review, and other journals. The Slow Vanishing is her short story collection. She has also published nine poetry books. Maureen lives in Durham, North Carolina, with her writer husband and her cat Lola.
Advance Praise
“Maureen Sherbondy’s intriguing coming-of-age tale, Lucky Brilliant, is an entrancing page-turner.” –Lisa Williams Kline, author of One Week of You, Writer Before Your Eyes
“…perfectly captures teen anger, confusion, and alienation in a fast-paced story of loss and longing.” –Nancy Young, author of Sensing Things
“Maureen Sherbondy’s intriguing coming-of-age tale, Lucky Brilliant, is an entrancing page-turner.” –Lisa Williams Kline, author of One Week of You, Writer Before Your Eyes
“Maureen Sherbondy’s intriguing coming-of-age tale, Lucky Brilliant, is an entrancing page-turner.” –Lisa Williams Kline, author of One Week of You, Writer Before Your Eyes
“…perfectly captures teen anger, confusion, and alienation in a fast-paced story of loss and longing.” –Nancy Young, author of Sensing Things
Lucky Brilliant is an emotive look at love, loss and friendship. Beautifully written with a strong plot and characters that are flawed but very easy to connect with,
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
Was this review helpful?
Jessi H, Reviewer
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
I dd enjoy this book. It is worth noting, this book isnt telling a "tale" per say. It's more like you are a silent observer watching as Lucky deals with the death of her father and the impact it has. There is no real ending where you just know its over. we just kind of watch until Lucky seems to come to grips with this new life. That being said, it was still a very interesting read. I plowed through it in just a few hours. Lucky is super relatable.
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
Was this review helpful?
Bex M, Reviewer
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
Lucky Brilliant, also known as Lucy Brilliant, is stressed out, waiting for her dad to come home with the canvas she needs for a school project. However, her father never comes home- leaving Lucky and her mother to be plunged into a nightmare that only seems to get worse.
This was a really engaging and captivating read, once I'd started it I raced through to see what was going to happen next! It was fun and very dramatic, with lots of twists and turns. I also really liked that there was a psychic element that I didn't expect, I think it added a really nice edge to the novel.
On the other hand, there were lots of parts that felt completely unbelieveable. That feels like a weird comment to make when the plot and themes required a suspension of reality that I really enjoyed; I think it's that it tried to blend fantasy with real-world, and whilst the fantasy elements were great, the real-world parts just felt too extraordinary, and untethered to any kind of reality. It often felt quite one-sided and one-dimensional.
There were also some parts that felt pretty dubious, the Silas storyline felt a bit ableist, and there was some fatphobia throughout too. I also feel like the portrayal of Eva was a bit sexist in some ways? Less in the way she herself was written, and more in the way that Lucky viewed her.
Misgivings aside, it was a really fun read!
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
Was this review helpful?
Reviewer 660546
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
I received a copy of this book to review from Netgalley. Thank you for the opportunity.
This book reads well and easily, as it's writing is so smooth and really evokes a teenagers life. The characters are fascinating especially as the story goes on and we learn more about their backgrounds.
However, some parts of the story seemed unbelievable and like they were added to heap misery upon misery on Lucky. It made the story line melodramatic and less engaging.
On the whole an OK book.
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
Was this review helpful?
Featured Reviews
Kelly M, Media/Journalist
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
Lucky Brilliant is an emotive look at love, loss and friendship. Beautifully written with a strong plot and characters that are flawed but very easy to connect with,
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
5 stars
Was this review helpful?
Jessi H, Reviewer
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
I dd enjoy this book. It is worth noting, this book isnt telling a "tale" per say. It's more like you are a silent observer watching as Lucky deals with the death of her father and the impact it has. There is no real ending where you just know its over. we just kind of watch until Lucky seems to come to grips with this new life. That being said, it was still a very interesting read. I plowed through it in just a few hours. Lucky is super relatable.
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
4 stars
Was this review helpful?
Bex M, Reviewer
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
Lucky Brilliant, also known as Lucy Brilliant, is stressed out, waiting for her dad to come home with the canvas she needs for a school project. However, her father never comes home- leaving Lucky and her mother to be plunged into a nightmare that only seems to get worse.
This was a really engaging and captivating read, once I'd started it I raced through to see what was going to happen next! It was fun and very dramatic, with lots of twists and turns. I also really liked that there was a psychic element that I didn't expect, I think it added a really nice edge to the novel.
On the other hand, there were lots of parts that felt completely unbelieveable. That feels like a weird comment to make when the plot and themes required a suspension of reality that I really enjoyed; I think it's that it tried to blend fantasy with real-world, and whilst the fantasy elements were great, the real-world parts just felt too extraordinary, and untethered to any kind of reality. It often felt quite one-sided and one-dimensional.
There were also some parts that felt pretty dubious, the Silas storyline felt a bit ableist, and there was some fatphobia throughout too. I also feel like the portrayal of Eva was a bit sexist in some ways? Less in the way she herself was written, and more in the way that Lucky viewed her.
Misgivings aside, it was a really fun read!
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
Was this review helpful?
Reviewer 660546
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
3 stars
I received a copy of this book to review from Netgalley. Thank you for the opportunity.
This book reads well and easily, as it's writing is so smooth and really evokes a teenagers life. The characters are fascinating especially as the story goes on and we learn more about their backgrounds.
However, some parts of the story seemed unbelievable and like they were added to heap misery upon misery on Lucky. It made the story line melodramatic and less engaging.
On the whole an OK book.
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Kelly M, Media/Journalist
Jessi H, Reviewer
Bex M, Reviewer
Reviewer 660546
