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Lucky Paperback – Dec 7 2021
Marissa Stapley (Author) Find all the books, read about the author and more. See search results for this author |
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What if you had the winning ticket that would change your life forever, but you couldn’t cash it in?
Lucky Armstrong is a tough, talented grifter who has just pulled off a million-dollar heist with her boyfriend, Cary. She’s ready to start a brand-new life, with a new identity—when things go sideways. Lucky finds herself alone for the first time, navigating the world without the help of either her father or her boyfriend, the two figures from whom she’s learned the art of the scam.
When she discovers that a lottery ticket she bought on a whim is worth millions, her elation is tempered by one big problem: cashing in the winning ticket means she’ll be arrested for her crimes. She’ll go to prison, with no chance to redeem her fortune.
As Lucky tries to avoid capture and make a future for herself, she must confront her past by reconciling with her father; finding her mother, who abandoned her when she was just a baby; and coming to terms with the man she thought she loved—whose dark past is catching up with her, too.
This is a novel about truth, personal redemption, and the complexity of being good. It introduces a singularly gifted, multilayered character who must learn what it means to be independent and honest...before her luck runs out.
- Print length256 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateDec 7 2021
- Dimensions15.75 x 2.03 x 22.35 cm
- ISBN-101668002450
- ISBN-13978-1668002452
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Review
— REESE WITHERSPOON
“A wild and deeply satisfying rollercoaster ride through the world of a con artist with a heart of gold. Propulsive and affecting, Lucky is the most fun I’ve had reading a book in quite a while.”
— TAYLOR JENKINS REID, New York Times bestselling author of Malibu Rising and Daisy Jones & the Six
“Stapley’s gorgeous writing cuts to the bone, and her grifter heroine, both vulnerable and fierce, is driven by a genius premise. With equally compelling alternate timelines, Stapley takes readers on a gripping, heart-wrenching journey of resilience, hope, and redemption. A stunning read!”
— SAMANTHA M. BAILEY, #1 bestselling author of Woman on the Edge
“A fun page-turner.”
— Toronto Star
“Meet Lucky Armstrong, an unconventional heroine who is on the run from her past with a winning lottery ticket that could change her future. A story of survival, redemption, and forgiveness, Lucky explores the power of second chances. A riveting caper full of heart, I loved this book!”
— KARMA BROWN, bestselling author of Recipe for a Perfect Wife
“Who can you trust when everything you’ve ever known is a lie? That’s the fundamental question in Stapley’s fourth book, a Bonnie-and-Clyde meets Gone Girl tale of family and the search for stability.”
— Booklist
“A criminal with a winning lottery ticket scrambles to elude arrest in this thrilling adventure. . . . Stapley raises the stakes through Lucky’s increasingly desperate moves while adding depth via flashbacks to Lucky’s childhood, which was full of scams and disappointments, and through Lucky’s gradual reckoning with the truth. This page-turner packs in more than its share of heart.”
— Publishers Weekly
“A grifter on the run who wins the lottery is only the opening gambit of this high-fueled twisty tale through the life of Lucky, daughter of a con artist who seemed doomed to make her father’s mistakes. Will the money save her and provide her with redemption or lead her down darker paths? You’ll want to put this on your to-read list immediately.”
— CATHERINE McKENZIE, USA Today bestselling author of I’ll Never Tell
“With an original premise, a gutsy-yet-vulnerable heroine, dodgy villains, and bad choices galore, Marissa Stapley's highly entertaining Lucky is sure to wow readers. Fast-paced, skillfully crafted, and beautifully written, this book had me stay up late and get up early to find out what would happen to that winning lottery ticket. I loved it!”
— HANNAH MARY McKINNON, bestselling author of Sister Dear
“This fun romp, with deeper themes of identity, family ties, and the meaning of truth in a life built on lies, kept me greedily turning pages late into the night. Perfect for book clubs—or anyone looking for their next unputdownable read.”
— COLLEEN OAKLEY, USA Today bestselling author of You Were There Too
“Stapley’s novels are always filled with strong, intriguing women and Lucky is no exception. Lucky Armstrong is the flawed, fascinating character at the heart of this gripping novel, and as we follow the twists and turns of her adventures, we’re not sure where she’s going to take us—but it’s a hell of a fun ride.”
— ELIZABETH RENZETTI, bestselling author of Based on a True Story and Shrewed
“Stapley has created a complicated woman just as magnetic and compelling for her readers as she is for the people she fleeces—and luckily, readers will only get richer by being swept away with her story of curious fortunes.”
— KERRY CLARE, author of Waiting for a Star to Fall
“An honestly moving and propulsive book about the art of the con, Lucky has the pathos of Paper Moon and the bite of The Grifters shot through with real heart and humour. Even though she’s one charming criminal, you’ll root for Luciana ‘Lucky’ Armstrong—a vibrant, sexy, full-blooded character—to get what she (really) deserves in life, which is for her luck to never run out.”
— LISA GABRIELE, bestselling author of The Winters
“[A] rollicking road-trip novel . . . With Lucky’s traumatic childhood with her conman father revealed in flashbacks, it’s no wonder the TV rights were sold to Disney with Stapley tapped to write the pilot. . . . This book club pick will no [doubt] lead to lively debates on duplicity, truth, luck, nature vs. nurture in child-rearing, and how to spot a con from a mile away.”
— Zoomer
“A page-turning novel . . . Stapley brings up interesting questions about punishment, redemption, and forgiveness, as the story unfolds in a delicious manner. Lucky is a ride with a badass friend who just happens to be that much smarter and sneakier than anyone else around.”
— Quill & Quire
“A compelling and thrilling road-trip novel about a talented grifter whose past comes back to haunt her.”
— 49th Shelf
About the Author
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Product details
- Publisher : Simon & Schuster (Dec 7 2021)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 256 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1668002450
- ISBN-13 : 978-1668002452
- Item weight : 204 g
- Dimensions : 15.75 x 2.03 x 22.35 cm
- Best Sellers Rank: #3,486 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #194 in Domestic Life in Women's Fiction
- #221 in Family Life (Books)
- #285 in Contemporary Women's Fiction
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Marissa Stapley is an award-nominated journalist and the bestselling author of the novels Mating for Life (2014), Things to Do When It's Raining (2018) and The Last Resort (2019), which is an Oprah Magazine, New York Post, US Weekly and Parade Magazine favourite. Her writing has appeared in newspapers and magazines across North America, including the Globe and Mail, National Post, Toronto Star, Reader's Digest, Elle and Today's Parent. She has taught creative writing and editing at the University of Toronto and Centennial College. She lives in Toronto with her family. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @marissastapley or like her page on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/MarissaStapleyAuthor/) for updates and contests!
Customer reviews

Reviewed in Canada on June 5, 2022
Top reviews from Canada
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It’s no wonder why Hollywood snapped up the rights to this fantastic page turner 😃 Don’t miss this incredibly fast paced thrill ride! 🚙💰🍀✨
I knew I was supposed to empathize with Lucky but was never fully engaged by her character. She lived a childhood where her father taught her to lie, trick people, change her appearance and identity, and steal. They were always on the run, moving quickly to evade the law. They were never in one place long enough for Lucky to make friends or go to school. She struggled with morality and longed for traditional, settled family life.
Despite her early experiences, finding that she could quickly gain her victim's trust and their money, she was naive. As she matured, she trusted the wrong people, made bad choices, and was readily conned herself. Once she moved in with her first boyfriend and lover, he turned out to be a greater con man than her father. They were both wanted by the police. They accumulated a large sum of money through various illegal swindles. One was a false investment set up by Lucky. It worked like a Ponzi scheme that took retirement funds from the elderly, and when it collapsed, her boyfriend absconded with all the ill-gained money in their accounts. Lucky always held the delusion instilled by her father that they only took money from the wealthy who would never miss it.
Her boyfriend was on the run with their money, and Lucky was alone. Her father was now in prison, betrayed by a powerful female criminal mastermind for whom he worked. Lucky had bought a multi-million dollar lottery ticket and discovered she was the winner. She has no way to cash it in without giving away her true identity and going to prison for a string of past crimes. From clues she had learned from her father when he was drunk, she decides to search for the long-lost mother she never knew. While searching, she carries out more cons and finally meets the woman eluded to by her father. Maybe she can convince her to cash the lottery ticket for her? She is also being watched and endangered by the criminal mastermind who employed her father. The police have long sought this woman, but they have never been able to apprehend or charge her.
I thought we needed more backstory and character development for the nun who handed over baby Lucky to the man claiming to be her father. This nun had a sufficient hidden stash of money to gladly support and educate the baby's mother. Was her money the result of fraud?
This story ends with Lucky's remorse and redemption due to a hurried and unbelievable intervention and ending. Without the circumstances set up in this rushed ending, I had to wonder if she would have continued her life of crime without this conclusion.
Top reviews from other countries

The story follows our main character Lucky, daughter of a con artist turned con artist herself. She’s on the run and planning to get safely to somewhere with lax extradition rules.
The story is a time flip between the present - set in 2008 - and the past following Lucky as she grows up working with her Father, and her life after his arrest. In the scenes narrating the past, I found there was a bit of a lull when I lost interest however as the present is interspersed frequently throughout my interested remained.
Lucky finds out more about herself as the story unfolds including finding out her mother’s identity and reaching a form of redemption. I felt that the end of the book all happened very quickly and all of a sudden I was on the last page. I feel like there could have been a bit more focus on the end, given the detail of how Lucky came to be in the position we first meet her in.

With an abandoned baby found on a church doorstep by a nun there is a subplot running parallel that could blow the biggest scam of all wide open.
I really liked Lucky as a protagonist, she is smart, resourceful and has a lot of goodness for a criminal on the run. The real baddies were unlikeable, convincing and some not quite as rehabilitated as they have made out.
This was such a fun read and my only quibble is that I had pretty much figured it all out and very early on. No twists and no surprises but I loved Lucky as a character so much it really didn’t matter in the big scheme of things. I suppose I just wanted to be conned a little as a reader like one of their marks.

The book takes place across a dual timeline - Following Lucky during her present-day adventures, avoiding capture and clinging desperately to her winning lottery ticket, and jumping back in time to her childhood and unveiling how her father taught her how to run scams to the level of perfection she now holds herself to.
This was a really enjoyable read, though perhaps not as demanding on my concentration as my usual crime reads, but this just resulted in it being a nice easy read. It was interesting to see the contrast between the scams and crimes Lucky was coerced into by her father, to then see the goodness in her shine through in adulthood. Yes, she still committed crimes alongside her boyfriend, but she went out of her way to also do good deeds, trying to even out her own karma a little. It shone a realistic light on the situation, showing that people aren't necessarily inherently good or bad - There's a great big grey area that people like Lucky fall into.
This is definitely a unique book to read, but one I would totally recommend to anyone wanting a change of pace from the usual style crime novel!

Main character Lucky has been through a bloody lot thats one thing. Heists. Robbery. Stealing. On the run. But she was easily led astray by her father, boyfriend and others surrounding her. She was never alone. Will she change? Pay for her crimes? Get caught? Get Lucky? Alot happens throughout this story so there is always something to keep the reader hooked. Will her lottery ticket change her?
Mel got the ending spot on. I didn’t have a clue. But a brilliant ending to a brilliant story. We both really enjoyed it. The story flicks between the present Lucky and Lucky in the past. Highly recommend! Had me hooked. A well deserved four stars from me. One I won’t forget in a long time. Its also currently 99p.
