The Good Luck Girls

by Charlotte Nicole Davis

Paper Book, 2019

Status

Available

Call number

PZ7.1.D358 G66 2019

Publication

New York : Tor Teen, 2019.

Description

Westworld meets The Handmaid's Tale in this stunning fantasy adventure from debut author Charlotte Nicole Davis. Aster, the protector Violet, the favorite Tansy, the medic Mallow, the fighter Clementine, the catalyst THE GOOD LUCK GIRLS The country of Arketta calls them Good Luck Girls-they know their luck is anything but. Sold to a "welcome house" as children and branded with cursed markings. Trapped in a life they would never have chosen. When Clementine accidentally murders a man, the girls risk a dangerous escape and harrowing journey to find freedom, justice, and revenge in a country that wants them to have none of those things. Pursued by Arketta's most vicious and powerful forces, both human and inhuman, their only hope lies in a bedtime story passed from one Good Luck Girl to another, a story that only the youngest or most desperate would ever believe. It's going to take more than luck for them all to survive.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member ladycato

I'll say straight up: I'm sick to death of the trope of old west bordellos. Therefore, I started this YA book with trepidation. I was soon surprised by the book's thoughtful take on the horrors of human trafficking, all in an original weird west fantasy setting.

The "Good Luck Girls" aren't that

lucky at all. They are girls sold into sexual slavery at 'welcome houses' that pepper the wilderness. All of this is referenced in delicate ways, but you know what is going on. When Clementine's debut night goes horribly wrong, she flees town along with her sister and other girls. They become bandits out of need to survive, but they ultimately have one goal: freedom, which means finding their way to the mythical Lady Ghost who can remove their magical brands.

This book handles difficult subjects like rape and abuse with great sensitivity. All too often now, I come across that kind of thing in books and stop reading. I'm sick of how some authors use it as a crutch for female character development. This novel, though, shows strength and resilience in its cast of women. It feels real, fantastical as the setting is, and that's all the more important since it is for a young adult audience.

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LibraryThing member Monkeypats

This book’s got a great premise/storyline and the writing was good, but somehow a wild escape from forced prostitution, being pursued by an evil man, escaping raveners that can cause pain with a thought, performing feats of daring... it lacked adrenaline or suspense. I can’t figure out why

though. Several scenes should have been heart pounding, but weren’t. Also, it took a long time for me to care about the characters - although I’ve read a few books lately with that feeling, so that may just be me. I did like the ending and now I sort of want to know what happens in the next book. Would definitely read this author again though!! I think book 2 will be on my to read list...

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LibraryThing member Verkruissen

Definitely a unique and exciting story to read. It has elements of a western set in a steampunk fantasy world and is unlike anything I've ever read before. The good luck girls are anything but lucky. These are girls who have basically been sold into sex slavery in places called "Welcome Houses".

These girls are marked with a "favor" that is like a tattoo that cannot be removed or hidden without causing excruciating pain or death. When Aster's little sister accidentally kills her "Brag" (customer) on her first "lucky night" Aster comes up with a crazy plan to get them and some of the other girls out. Violet, a girl born in the welcome house asks to go along with them and in return she will tell them where to find Lady Ghost, a woman from bedtimes stories as children, who could remove their favor and free them from the lives they were sold into.
Definitely for fans of dystopian stories or tales with a western flavor. I'm definitely looking forward to the next book in the series! Special thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this amazing book!

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LibraryThing member rgruberhighschool

RGG: Fantasy set in the Old West. Difficult topics of racism, sex slavery (not overly explicity but clear), other topical issues. Yet a fun adventure read. Reading Interest: 14-YA.

LibraryThing member Linyarai

I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads. I really enjoyed it, it was unique and exciting and the characters were all likeable and realistic. I look forward to reading the next book.

LibraryThing member oldandnewbooksmell

The Good Luck Girls is a feminist western-est debut novel by Charlotte Nicole Davis. In Arketta, girls are sold to Welcome Houses, branded on their necks by favors, and forced into a life they never would have chosen.
After Clementine accidentally kills a man on her Lucky Night, her sister Aster

knows they much escape. With Clementine's friends Mallow and Tansy and head girl Violet following along, the girls make their grand escape. Pursed by Arketta’s most vicious and powerful forces, the girls trek across the Scab in search for assistance from a bedtime story called Lady Ghost.
As soon as I read the first few pages of this book, I wanted to read it all. Davis does a wonderful job at world building. Similar, I felt, to the likes of Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone or Justina Ireland’s Dread Nation. I was able to feel myself there with the girls on their journey to freedom.
The story has strong women with heartbreaking backgrounds who form a family and all have beautifully written character arcs and growth. (Violet’s was my favorite) Davis’ writing style has become one of my favorites.
There is both fantasy and western elements sprinkled throughout the book. There are raveners who can mess with your mind and feelings, and spirits - both calm and vengeful ones - that haunt the land giving the fantasy feel. There’s also robbing, stealing, and “The Law” as there is in westerns.
The girls are constantly on the move so the book is always filled with action - clear up to the very end. It’s face pace, but it’s never fast enough that I felt like I was left in the dust.
I’m not a big fantasy reader, but this book is one I recommend checking out.

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LibraryThing member DeltaQueen50

I just finished the fantasy adventure entitled The Good Luck Girls and this was a book that I was sorry to see end. The debut novel of author Charlotte Nicole Davis, the book is an excellent combination of great story and excellent world building.

Set in a dust filled version of the Old West the

story shows us a unique bond of sisterhood as five young women attempt to escape their lives of bondage in a house of ill-repute. Sold by their families as children and brought up to serve men and their needs, an accidental death is the trigger that sets this five on the road to freedom. Their journey to safety is fraught with danger as this world has fearsome ghosts called Vengeants and merciless trackers, called Raveners who are indifferent to cold, hunger, fatigue or pain.

Being a debut novel meant that there were some flaws in the execution but I loved this story set in an alternative Wild West where one’s freedom relies on class and gender. The story is full of action yet also allows the reader to learn about and care for the five runaways. The bonds of sisterhood and found family are strong, the characters well developed, the issues are relevant to today and the story moves quickly making The Good Luck Girls a great read.

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LibraryThing member LVStrongPuff

Wow! WOw! WOW! This book is amazing. I love everything about this book. I screamed at the characters. I cried with the characters. I gasped with the characters. The story drew me in and I loved everything about it. The story is one of women working together and leaning on one another. I love that

this wasn't a story of women needing a man or men to save them. I cannot wait to read more in this series.

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