REVIEW: Lucky Break by Jaclyn Westlake

In Lucky Break by Jaclyn Westlake, Eliza’s fiancé leaves her due to infertility issues. She decides to move to the small town of Juneberry Lake to get a fresh start but instead finds a mystery. With a private investigator snooping around her property, mail left behind by the former owner of her home, and her neighbors acting suspiciously, Eliza may have gotten more than she had bargained for. Even her new friend and potential boyfriend Joel is keeping secrets. Will Eliza be able to get to the bottom of the mystery?

I enjoyed the mystery, until the truth was revealed. The reason for everything happening was anticlimactic. After all the build up through the whole book, I was expecting it to be more than it was. The neighbors went through this whole elaborate plot to cover something that wasn’t really a big deal; it was a bit of a letdown. Joel himself is hiding his own secret, but I didn’t understand why he felt like he couldn’t confide in Eliza. All in all, Juneberry Lake is filled with secrets that didn’t really need to be secrets.

That being said, I did like the tight-knit small town and the variety of characters that lived there. I also liked that being there gave Eliza the chance to analyze her life and finally realize what makes her happy, instead of trying to do what others think she needs to be happy.

There are some references to infertility struggles in this book, which may be a trigger for some people. If that’s you, you may want to consider skipping this one. There’s not a lot of conversation about it, but it is there.

Despite my disappointment with the mystery aspect, I enjoyed the book overall. The characters and the town are interesting and entertaining, and I would like to see more books about the residents of this Juneberry Lake. This book would be for readers who enjoy stories about small towns, starting over, and mysteries.

Book Info:

Publication: July 15, 2025 | Avon |

Eliza has always had a plan—until her meticulously plotted life implodes, and her engagement falls apart. At thirty-two she suddenly finds herself second-guessing the picture-perfect future she’d always envisioned, one that included raising 2.5 children near her tight-knit Italian family in San Francisco.

Then she is offered the chance to start over in Juneberry Lake, a small Midwestern town eager to lure remote workers to their picturesque community. Shocking everyone, including herself, she packs up her apartment and buys a lake house sight unseen.

Juneberry Lake is as delightful as it looked in the pictures. And the pictures didn’t even include Joel, a fellow new arrival who works alongside her every day in an adorable coffee shop. But if Eliza is hoping to spy her uncertain future in the shimmering waters of Juneberry Lake, she’ll find herself out of luck. Because her friendly Midwestern neighbors are keeping a marvelous secret—one that will help Eliza see that her recent spate of bad luck was never her fault…and that the tide can turn when you least expect it.