Had heard good things about Maciel's previous book, Tease, but feel as though some of the topics this book covered weren't necessarily handled in the best way.

An unflinching read. It will be perfect for those who enjoyed Asking For It.

I hadn't expected to enjoy Lucky Girl as much as I did.

An unlikeable character, Rosie is the main focus. When her best friend Maddie comes back after being at a summer sports programme and Rosie thinks she has changed. After getting jealous their friendship starts to strain.

The book covers really tough topics in an interesting way that shows how different people can interpret the same situation. Bringing out the many people impacted by these issues really did highlight the importance and the book spells out the distinction between right and wrong when many could be in doubt

Thank you to publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication. A hard-hitting and topical read, that will probably appeal to teen readers.
Rosie is one of those girls it would be easy to hate. Pretty and popular, she is used to using her looks to get what she wants. Initially, she seems shallow and quite unlikeable and definitely not a good friend to Maddie. However, Maciel tries to show there’s more to Rosie than people realise.
After her best friend returns from a summer in Spain, Rosie is jealous of her new relationship. Sadly, she ends up in a situation she can’t control and feels alone after she is assaulted by her ex. There’s no graphic description of the assault, and in the current media focus on sexual harassment it’s important to get teen readers exploring just what constitutes assault. Sadly I think there’ll be many teen readers who will recognise what happens to Rosie as an all-too-familiar story, and all too many who will think Rosie is wrong to question what happens to her.
The novel felt like a powerful idea that didn’t quite work out. I personally felt I got too side-tracked by the plots surrounding Sophie’s relationship with her sister, and her friendship with Alex. Throwing in a best gay friend story felt like too many bases were being covered to really explore any in appropriate depth.