BLOG TOUR: Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith | #WindfallPH

Windfall
by Jennifer E. Smith
Published 2 May 2017 by Delacorte Press
Young Adult, Contemporary
Link to Goodreads
Order: Amazon | Book Depository

Alice doesn’t believe in luck—at least, not the good kind. But she does believe in love, and for some time now, she’s been pining for her best friend, Teddy. On his eighteenth birthday—just when it seems they might be on the brink of something—she buys him a lottery ticket on a lark. To their astonishment, he wins $140 million, and in an instant, everything changes.

At first, it seems like a dream come true, especially since the two of them are no strangers to misfortune. As a kid, Alice won the worst kind of lottery possible when her parents died just over a year apart from each other. And Teddy’s father abandoned his family not long after that, leaving them to grapple with his gambling debts. Through it all, Teddy and Alice have leaned on each other. But now, as they negotiate the ripple effects of Teddy’s newfound wealth, a gulf opens between them. And soon, the money starts to feel like more of a curse than a windfall.

As they try to find their way back to each other, Alice learns more about herself than she ever could have imagined . . . and about the unexpected ways in which luck and love sometimes intersect.

Lucky is the thing Alice Chapman and Teddy McAvoy was been anything but.

Lotteries. Countless people would bet just to get tickets to win. This started as a joke. A birthday present that ended as an unexpected windfall.

It was my first time to read a book that includes lotteries, let alone about winning one. I’ve been curious since about what I’d do if there were suddenly millions of dollars in my pocket. Here’s the story between two best friends dealing with the best luck they’ve received in their whole lives.

Alice has been through life changing misfortunes throughout her life to know that such good luck does not exist. At first, she can be quite confusing in my opinion. She was unreadable, and I wasn’t sure what she really wanted… but as time passed, I grew to understand and know why she can be how she is. She’s full of love, yet she couldn’t channel it to the people around her because of the barriers she had. She was scared and hurt. Alice Chapman’s character development was from a life where she thought she was doing the things she thought she wanted, to finding her true self and the things she truly wanted in life.

Meanwhile, Teddy was your natural charmer. Even though he’s had his own share of terrible luck himself, he had that power to make people drawn to him in a good way. That includes his best friend Alice who’s been secretly in love with him for a long time. But winning the lottery changed him, as expected. Being poor and unlucky his whole life, he wanted to make the most out of his sudden wealth. I thought it was inevitable for him to be flat-out annoying, because despite his charm since he was still a stubborn teenager (we’ve all been through that, right?!). Some of his actions were predictable. But throughout the story, I ended up enjoying Teddy McAvoy, his thoughtfulness and his charm despite the flaws he had.

The storyline of Windfall was nicely thought. Though there were times I felt like some scenes were cut short. I wish there were more of Sawyer, Max, and Leo. The family dynamic in this book pulled my heartstrings, and brought me to silent tears countless of times. Those were my favorite scenes, without a doubt.

Jennifer E. Smith’s writing was clear and easy to get through, cute even. I flew through this book and it cured me from my reading slump! This is the first novel of her’s that I’ve read, I’m looking forward to reading more of her books in the future.

Overall, Windfall was a fresh, easy read with a bit of heaviness in the family aspect. I would recommend this to anyone that’s looking for a quick read that also holds a lesson on love, friendship, family, and about taking certain things for granted.

Huge thanks to JM from Book Freak Revelations for inviting me and hosting this tour! Being involved in the book tour did not in any way affect my stand with this novel. Check out JM’s post for a chance to win a copy of Windfall! Click here for more details.

Other stops shared below!

• Jem at The Bibliophile Confessions
• Nicka at Read by Nicka
• Bianca at Stay Bookish
• Fay at Bibliophile Soprano
• Shealea at That Bookshelf Bitch

About Jennifer E. Smith:

Jennifer E. Smith is the author of eight books for young adults, including WINDFALL and THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT. She earned her master’s degree in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, and her writing has been translated into 33 languages.

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