A sharp and twisty exploration of female friendship from the New York Times bestselling author of A Flicker in the Dark and All the Dangerous Things.

Lucy Sharpe is larger than life. Magnetic, addictive. Bold and dangerous. Especially for Margot, who meets Lucy at the end of their freshman year at a liberal arts college in South Carolina. Margot is the shy one, the careful one, always the sidekick and never the center of attention. But when Lucy singles her out at the end of the year, a year Margot spent studying and playing it safe, and asks her to room together, something in Margot can’t say no―something daring, or starved, or maybe even envious.

And so Margot finds herself living in an off-campus house with three other girls, Lucy, the ringleader; Sloane, the sarcastic one; and Nicole, the nice one, the three of them opposites but also deeply intertwined. It’s a year that finds Margot finally coming out of the shell she’s been in since the end of high school, when her best friend Eliza died three weeks after graduation. Margot and Lucy have become the closest of friends, but by the middle of their sophomore year, one of the fraternity boys from the house next door has been brutally murdered… and Lucy Sharpe is missing without a trace.

From the author of A Flicker in the Dark and All the Dangerous Things comes a tantalizing thriller about the nature of friendship and belonging, about loyalty, envy, and betrayal―another gripping novel from an author quickly becoming the gold standard in psychological suspense.

Book Type:

Psychological Thriller

Review: Only If You’re Lucky

Longing for a new start in the aftermath of tragedy, a college freshman moves in with new roommates only to spiral into chaos once again.

Margot meets Lucy at the end of their freshman year. Margot is reserved, careful, forever fading into the background of her more spirited companions. Lucy is just that—magnetic, uninhibited, the center of attention. When Lucy asks Margot to room with her and two other girls, it feels like the perfect opportunity for Margot to become someone different, to start anew after the death of her high-school best friend.

Soon, however, the past begins to tangle with the present, and tragedy rears its ugly head once more when Levi, a friend of the group, is found dead, and Lucy disappears shortly after.

Everyone is hiding secrets, and as detectives try to ferret out the truth, they’re all at risk.

Willingham deftly weaves a knotted tale of friendship, belonging, jealousy, and obsession. The story boasts a compelling premise, but arguably moves at too slow a pace to reach that fever pitch we long for in thrillers—especially if compared to the vibe of ALL THE DANGEROUS THINGS (which I loved). Echoes of ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ thrum throughout, as we uncover what everyone hides. Overall, a solid psychological thriller, but not as strong as what I’ve read before from this author.