Title: Chasing Lucky
Author: Jenn Bennett
Publication: November 10, 2020
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Genre: Teen, YA Fiction, Romance
Pages: 414
SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)
Budding photographer Josie Saint-Martin has spent half her life with her single mother, moving from city to city. When they return to her historical New England hometown years later to run the family bookstore, Josie knows it’s not forever. Her dreams are on the opposite coast, and she has a plan to get there.
What she doesn’t plan for is a run-in with the town bad boy, Lucky Karras. Outsider, rebel…and her former childhood best friend. Lucky makes it clear he wants nothing to do with the newly returned Josie. But everything changes after a disastrous pool party, and a poorly executed act of revenge lands Josie in some big-time trouble—with Lucky unexpectedly taking the blame.
Determined to understand why Lucky was so quick to cover for her, Josie discovers that both of them have changed, and that the good boy she once knew now has a dark sense of humor and a smile that makes her heart race. And maybe, just maybe, he’s not quite the brooding bad boy everyone thinks he is…
REVIEW:
Jenn Bennett’s novel Alex Approximately is one of my favorite YA fiction novels of all time. Recently I looked her up and found she has written other novels, so obviously I knew I had to read them and as I expected, she did not disappoint.
Chasing Lucky follows Josie as she moves back to her hometown and tries to figure out what she is going to do with her life, and it does not involve staying there. Until she runs into her childhood best friend and everything changes.
Josie is a little flighty. I do not blame her because of her upbringing, but I found myself angry at her many times for her flighty personality and inability to handle any type of emotions well. The single mom line in this story really resonates with me, as I am also a single mom, but her mom is a bit too much for me. Her behavior should be frowned upon and the audacity of her rules on Josie when she’s acting so poorly makes me mad.
Now it sounds like I didn’t enjoy this novel, but that is not it at all. I feel like Bennett took all these negative aspects of their lives and built this really beautiful story about a teen trying to figure herself out and her life, while dealing with a lot! Kind of flighty, emotionally unstable mother, crazy extended family, boy problems, and deciding what to do with her life post-high school. So many good, juicy storylines to follow!
I continue to love Jenn Bennett’s work and highly recommend it to everyone who loves well-balanced, page-turning YA fiction novels. You will never be disappointed.
