Mary Higgins Clark Award finalist!
Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel finalist!
Anthony Award for Best Paperback Original finalist!
A 2022 Illinois Reads selection!
Named a most anticipated thriller by USA Today, Chicago Sun-Times, GoodReads, CrimeReads, and Literary Hub!
The Lucky One Reviews
“Another harrowing nightmare by a master of the sleepless night.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Riveting.”—Library Journal
A novel that “transcends its clever premise,” “a tantalizing effort” that is “unexpectedly moving.” —Chicago Tribune
“Rader-Day creates deeply believable, empathetic characters and puts the power in the hands of women, including older women. Pacing is fast but not frantic, and the story’s constant surprises and reveals evolve naturally and come together satisfyingly free of loose ends. The tightly crafted storytelling brings heat back into the familiar cold case plot, digging deep into those aches that never really fade.”—Publishers Weekly
“[Rader-Day’s] gifted storytelling makes this a fine read.” — Booklist
“This might well be my favourite Rader-Day so far: a brilliant premise intriguingly developed, totally believable characters and a climax that took my breath away.” —Ann Cleeves, New York Times and London Times bestselling author of The Long Call
“The fusion of relatable characters and a truly gripping plot result in a novel that is compulsively readable and quite literally impossible to stop thinking about—even long after the final pages are turned. As a loyal Lori Rader-Day fan, this feels to me like a major milestone and quite possibly her best book yet.” Full review. —BOLOBooks.com
“Rader-Day is a master at creating an immersive atmosphere of page-turning suspense; she also excels at structuring fictional puzzles that positively buzz with possibilities, clever mis-directions, and, finally, perception-shifting revelations. The Lucky One is Rader-Day’s fifth thriller; I am already happily looking forward to her sixth.” —Seattle Review of Books
“I was riveted from page one by this complex, psychologically astute tale of betrayal and hope with twists that keep coming up until the final breathtaking reveal.” —Hallie Ephron, New York Times bestselling author of Careful What You Wish For
“Lori Rader-Day takes us on a twisting journey into a past riven by secrets and lies that challenges everything we think we know about the ties that bind us. The Lucky One is that rare thing, a nail-biting thriller full of heart and soul.” —Carol Goodman, award-winning author of The Lake of Dead Languages and The Sea of Lost Girls
“Dark, loaded with memorable twists, and featuring a complex, flawed, and unforgettable protagonist, The Lucky One cements Lori Rader-Day’s place as one of crime fiction’s strongest and most compelling voices.” — Alex Segura, author of Blackout and Dangerous Ends
About The Lucky One
Most people who go missing are never found. But Alice was the lucky one…
As a child, Alice was stolen from her yard in a tiny Indiana community, but against the odds, her policeman father tracked her down within twenty-four hours and rescued her from harm. In the aftermath of the crime, her family decided to move to Chicago and close the door on that horrible day.
Yet Alice hasn’t forgotten. She devotes her spare time volunteering for a true-crime website called The Doe Pages scrolling through pages upon pages of missing and unidentified people, searching for clues that could help reunite families with their missing loved ones. When a face appears on Alice’s screen that she recognizes, she’s stunned to realize it’s the same man who kidnapped her decades ago. The post is deleted as quickly as it appeared, leaving Alice with more questions than answers.
Embarking on a search for the truth, she enlists the help of some amateur sleuths from The Doe Pages to connect the dots and find her kidnapper before he hurts someone else. Then Alice crosses paths with Merrily Cruz, another woman who’s been hunting for answers of her own. Together, they begin to unravel a dark, painful web of lies that will change what they thought they knew—and could cost them everything.
Twisting and compulsively readable, The Lucky One explores the lies we tell ourselves to feel safe.
