Kaylin (The Re-Read Queen)'s Reviews > Windfall

2.5 Stars

Overview:



Alice is in love with Teddy, her best-friend of nine years. She buys him a lottery ticket for his 18th birthday and they win millions.

That’s the premise of this book, and based off that brief description, you probably have an idea where the story is headed. And you’re probably right. No surprises here, really.

I received an ARC of this through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, thanks to Delacorte Press for the opportunity!

Pros:

The teenagers feel like teenagers. There are discussions about growing up and the real world that blended seamlessly with Alice’s narrative voice. It was relatable and felt real.

This is all very... aware? I'm not sure how to phrase what I mean. This was my first book by Jennifer E. Smith, and I've heard her books are fairly light. Completely wasn't expecting the characters to get called out on their behavior, or the MC to be explicitly aware of her relationships. Everyone is flawed, and these flaws are discussed. Relationships have problems and the characters communicate.

A surprisingly strong focus on family that I really enjoyed. Especially since it's a more unconventional family.

I loved the end. The last page itself was fantastic. Completely wrapped up the story without showing too much. Andends with a bang.

Cons

It’s all just so predictable.

As soon as Alice buys the ticket, you know it’s going to win. (Even if the blurb didn't give it away) As soon as Teddy wins you know he’s going to let it go to his head. Then it will continue like every other feel-good book.

And winning the lottery should never be boring. It took almost 20% of the book for them to even realize they'd won, then spent another large chunk talking about it. We were a third of the way through the book before the money actually entered the picture.

Alice has a brief romance with a random side-character. He wasn’t particularly well-developed, and it’s clear he's her Teddy-stand in. This whole dynamic was boring and cliché to me.

Leo’s whole character really felt like a cliché itself-- token gay best friend who loves art. I mean, I definitely want more LGBT representation, so it feels weird to complain about this, but it was so painfully obvious he was only there to further Alice’s story.

For instance, there are many references to Leo’s boyfriend, Max. But their relationship is never really fleshed out, we are just constantly told how “perfect” Max is.

I get Alice is a sweet and nice and kind person and all that jazz. I don’t need to see her volunteering some place new every other chapter to comprehend that. There were several aspects of her character I liked, but she was too-much of a goody-two-shoes. Who seriously turns down millions of dollars without hesitating? No one’s that ‘nice.’

In Conclusion

As strange as this sounds, I will definitely be checking out more of Smith’s books. The writing was there, the plot was just boring.