Lucky

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It was enjoyable in the sense that I honestly had no idea where the story was going the entire time, so I was looking forward to the ending. There are so many lines and quotes embedded in this novel that I wanted to capture and keep in my heart forever. I loved the organization of the chapters and how we bounced around from the present to the past. Cringey and uncomfortable. This book is trying to pander to progressive ideologies, but it comes off as disingenuous, preachy, and offensive. I wouldn’t recommend it. So, there was a peak and then a valley and then a peak and then a valley and so on.. I would find myself not being able to put the book down during the time between the rape and the trial, watching Alice justify her actions and her drinking and not even commenting on the fact that it was an escape mechanism. But, following the trial, I was in that sort of valley stage, which, I suppose, is how life goes and it took me a bit longer to get through that.

Daniel lost the ability to speak a few years before the start of the book. He communicates with people by slowly typing out words on his computer that a robotic voice reads aloud (think Stephen Hawking). However, Daniel’s closest companions, his home health aide Marjani and his best friend Travis developed a different way of communicating with him… telepathy. Daniel lives in the college town of Athens, Georgia. One of my dear friends is from Athens, attended UGA, and was married there, and if you are like her and have a love for that special place, this author clearly shares your same love in this book! It was a great setting to share Daniel’s story.What could have happened to this woman? Daniel wants to tell the police what he knows, but will they believe someone like him? What Daniel doesn’t realize is he’ll set a chain of events in motion which could threaten his life—but he’d probably do it anyway for the sake of the young woman. Later, he sees the news report of a missing woman, Ai-Chin. He remembers "That is the girl. And that was the car." He finds himself a "witness". Broadwater was tried and convicted in 1982 based largely on two pieces of evidence. 1. Sebold identified him as her rapist on the witness stand, and 2. microscopic hair analysis, which has since been deemed junk science. I think a lot of people are going to LOVE this one because the merit is there--I would recommend it to some, but it just was not one that I loved.

This in no way undermines the meat of the story, I'm just explaining my utter horror of discovering that I wasn't truly freaking out during this book. This is petty compared to everything else I wrote but I’m gonna add it in here anyway because it took me out of the book constantly- the old pop culture references. Daniel is 26 years old in 2019; the pop culture references he uses make him sound like he’s a grandpa. If Daniel was a movie buff or 1980’s pop culture aficionado, the references would make sense, but he’s not. I have never heard a young millennial/ old gen z person talk like this. I didn’t understand a single reference. I looked up half of them and figured the other half would just be an inside joke I would never understand… and the football references, omg, like water torture.

a b c d e Matthews, Karen (November 23, 2021). "Conviction overturned in 1981 rape of author Alice Sebold". The Associated Press. ISSN 0190-8286 . Retrieved November 29, 2021.

But at the heart of the story is Daniel’s heart. His goodness, warmth, and positivity. He educates the reader on spinal muscular atrophy, but even more so, the microaggressions and not-so-microaggressions those with physical disabilities are confronted with. I’ll never forget my time spent with Daniel or this most memorable and engaging story.I just can't quite figure out what genre this was. It seemed as if it tried to do a whole lot of things instead of focusing on the complexity and depth of ONE thing. The banter and one-liners and the embodiment of all the characters were good...but the plot seemed way too sporadic for my taste. This honestly could've been one of the "points" of the book, and if that was the case, it was not clear enough for me to actively notice and appreciate. 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 One morning Daniel sees a young woman walking down the street past his house. She does this every day. But on this day he sees her get into a car, and the next day he hears she has gone missing.

I didn't see her again for a couple days. I heard the news, of course, but she was busy with those things you hope you never know. Later, after the late-night trip to the hospital, and the rape kit, and the meeting with detectives from the sex crimes unit, and a phone call home that I can't imagine but have spent many hours imagining, I went to visit her in her dorm room.In what ways does the author defy our ideas of criminals? Were any of your perceptions of criminals, particularly female criminals, challenged? Daniel is pretty much homebound, although he can leave the house with assistance, and he has a very specific routine. He begins seeing a girl outside his house at the same time every morning who appears to be walking to class (he lives in a college town), and one day he sees her get into a car with a man. The next day the girl has made the news as having disappeared, and Daniel suddenly has to decide what to do about the knowledge he has. You don’t owe anyone anything. They help you because they love you. Why else does anyone help anyone? Letting someone help you is the nicest thing you can do for anyone."