“The upcoming year was going to be hard, no doubt about it. And maybe even the year after it. But I was strong enough. And brave enough.”
Addie can barely keep her temper in check and her brother knows just how to push her buttons, even though they are also best friends. Her mom can’t tolerate their squabble any longer when they fight at her sister’s destination wedding in Ireland. Their fate is to get along while they travel together to Italy to visit Addie’s friend, Lina, or both not play sports for school in the fall. They agree to get along, but just as Addie gets ready for them to leave for Italy, Ian changes the plans – and both of their futures.
Jenna Evans Welch is the daughter of my favorite author, Richard Paul Evans. I read her first book Love & Gelato and enjoyed it. I added Love & Luck to my list when I saw it was coming out. I preordered it along with Richard Paul Evan’s latest book, The Forgotten Road. I had hopes that Love & Luck would be better than Love & Gelato and it was.
Ian has had plans to ditch Addie and meet up with a fellow music fan, Rowan, to tour Ireland. Ian has been hiding a hobby from his family, but Addie is now in on his secret. She misses her flight trying to convince him to still go to Italy, so she is stuck traveling with her brother and his friend, learning about music and each other. Addie has a secret of her own that she finally deals with – with her brother’s help.
Love & Luck is a sweet story of siblings, love and friendship. It’s also about the struggle to be free and brave enough to be who you truly are and not what other people want you to be. I would recommend this book for high school readers or older, due to the nature of Addie’s secret (a photo taken with poor judgment). I liked it a lot more than Love & Gelato and I think Jenna Evans Welch’s book will only keep getting better.
Do you have a sibling you would consider a best friend, too? Tell us about him or her on the blog!