CW: cancer, loss of a parent

I'm probably not the first person who learned about this book via TikTok and I have to say, The Lucky List delivers what the author pitches: a sapphic lovestory set in the summertime, featuring a cast of quirky smalltown characters and a bucket list waiting to be completed. Furthermore, the author explores the topic of comp het (compulsory heterosexuality, a topic that many bi and lesbian individuals struggle with) in a nuanced manner, which I haven't seen in a lot of other YA books so far. (Note: I do not read all too many YA books, so I can't say if this is the norm or not!) Furthermore I enjoyed that sex did not play a giant role in the story, save for one moment in the past. I always get super frustrated when books follow the formula of "falling in love, kissing, dating, sex!, conflict, resolution", as it often glosses over the individual character's wants and needs and also perpetuates that narrative for readers. With tropes around hypersexual lesbians being A Thing(TM) anyway, I'm glad the author opted for a characterisation more focused on butterflies and self discovery.

I'm torn between giving this book two or three stars, as I still feel what I felt last night after finishing it: something is missing. The book could have certainly benefited from a bit more depth, with us learning more about Blake, the dynamics between Julie, Joe and Johnny and the overall personality of the town itself. A lot of scenes reminded me of the movie The Half of It, wherein the central scenes between Ellie and Aster also revolve around them navigating their familial obligations and relationships while also worrying about the future. While the themes of the two stories are quite different in the grand scheme of things, I think that fans of one will also enjoy the other.

We don't see Emily talk to a lot of other people, which I also think is one of the downsides of the story. A lot of threads are laid right from the beginning that are never picked up again, such as her best friend's brother Paul, who happens to be gay and someone who Emily gets along with quite well. The two of them could have had a lot of great and empowering relationships without Emily ever having to clearly come out, which would have given depth to both characters and more reason for Paul to be explicitly written as gay in the first place. Each point on the list seemed to be of great importance to Julie, so that by the end of the summer she seemed to be a completely different person. We never learn more about this beyond a few sentences explaining that Emily's dad ends up telling her a bit about her mother, which is a pity, given how important her mother is to the story itself.

I think this story had a lot of potential - I just wish we could have had a bit more depth.