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A review by agrandromance
Bad Luck Club by Denise Grover Swank, Angela Casella
4.0
3.5 Stars
Bad Luck Club is redemptive and touching but ultimately the romance is left a little on the sidelines.
In the Bad Luck Club (Asheville Brewing #4), a newly single and humbled Lee Buchanan is in Asheville fresh from having discovered his father’s and ex-fiancé’s betrayals. He’s living with Adalia, Jack and Iris and TRYING to find a place at Buchanan Brewery but not having much success.
So far he’s failed at every job his siblings have given him within the Brewery. He’s almost ready to try his hand at janitorial services next. He’s having an existential crisis, feeling like a failure and Adalia is determined to find a place for him at the brewery that makes him happy.
He sees Blue Combs when he’s out with Adalia and introduces himself having forgotten that he’s already “met” her twice while he was terribly drunk and embarrassed himself both times.
Blue wants to help Lee’s fractured soul by sponsoring him into the mysterious Bad Luck Club, however, this would mean they would have to spend a lot of time together and also that they would not be allowed to date one another. She’s currently dating another man who her friends all dislike and says she’s not interested in Lee but does she really mean it?
I was both looking forward to this book and apprehensive about it at the same time. Could Lee redeem himself from both his actions and inactions from the three previous books in the Asheville Brewing series? Would this book provide the necessary closure to wrap up the whole series? The answer is yes and no.
Lee’s character was redeemed with the help of Dottie, Blue and her found family that make up the characters of the Bad Luck Club. He was redeemed by his competence in his job with Buchanan Brewery and his desire to help his siblings. He was redeemed in a lot of ways however the journey to get there was a long one. Of course.
Lee has a LOT of work to do on himself when he first arrives in Asheville and the book lags in the middle as he grapples with his issues and I felt that it pulled attention and time from the romance that is supposed to be happening between Blue and Lee. It is slightly realistic though as he does have to work through his father’s failures as a parent and a human being, the death of his mother that he’s never let himself experience, all of his ingrained weaknesses of character that his father encouraged, and the rift with his siblings. It is a LOT. The authors may have written themselves into a corner by making Lee a puppet of his father for so long.
The romance proceeds and it is a good one, however, Lee’s former ways return in the climax and I really could have lived without that. It does allow for one of the great moments in the book in which Lee allows himself to be truly vulnerable - but with DOTTIE - which reinforces the theme of family that the book is presenting but sidesteps the romance once again.
The book ultimately does do right by the romance, the themes of family: both with the Buchanans and Blue’s found family and there is a bit of closure surrounding the brewery and Brew Fest. I would have personally liked about five more epilogues though because I like big time closure.
The authors gave Lee his happily ever after and allowed him his redemption with his family at his side. I love Lee now and loved his relationship with his family and Dottie. For that reason and the pacing issue, I’m giving Bad Luck Club 3.5 stars. It is still well worth your time to read. I look forward to reading Molly and Cal’s story next.
WRITING STYLE: 5/5
PLOT: 3/5
WORLD-BUILDING: 5/5
PACING: 3/5
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: 4/5
ROMANCE: 3/5
HEAT: 2/5 (closed door)
Bad Luck Club is redemptive and touching but ultimately the romance is left a little on the sidelines.
In the Bad Luck Club (Asheville Brewing #4), a newly single and humbled Lee Buchanan is in Asheville fresh from having discovered his father’s and ex-fiancé’s betrayals. He’s living with Adalia, Jack and Iris and TRYING to find a place at Buchanan Brewery but not having much success.
So far he’s failed at every job his siblings have given him within the Brewery. He’s almost ready to try his hand at janitorial services next. He’s having an existential crisis, feeling like a failure and Adalia is determined to find a place for him at the brewery that makes him happy.
He sees Blue Combs when he’s out with Adalia and introduces himself having forgotten that he’s already “met” her twice while he was terribly drunk and embarrassed himself both times.
Blue wants to help Lee’s fractured soul by sponsoring him into the mysterious Bad Luck Club, however, this would mean they would have to spend a lot of time together and also that they would not be allowed to date one another. She’s currently dating another man who her friends all dislike and says she’s not interested in Lee but does she really mean it?
I was both looking forward to this book and apprehensive about it at the same time. Could Lee redeem himself from both his actions and inactions from the three previous books in the Asheville Brewing series? Would this book provide the necessary closure to wrap up the whole series? The answer is yes and no.
Lee’s character was redeemed with the help of Dottie, Blue and her found family that make up the characters of the Bad Luck Club. He was redeemed by his competence in his job with Buchanan Brewery and his desire to help his siblings. He was redeemed in a lot of ways however the journey to get there was a long one. Of course.
Lee has a LOT of work to do on himself when he first arrives in Asheville and the book lags in the middle as he grapples with his issues and I felt that it pulled attention and time from the romance that is supposed to be happening between Blue and Lee. It is slightly realistic though as he does have to work through his father’s failures as a parent and a human being, the death of his mother that he’s never let himself experience, all of his ingrained weaknesses of character that his father encouraged, and the rift with his siblings. It is a LOT. The authors may have written themselves into a corner by making Lee a puppet of his father for so long.
The romance proceeds and it is a good one, however, Lee’s former ways return in the climax and I really could have lived without that. It does allow for one of the great moments in the book in which Lee allows himself to be truly vulnerable - but with DOTTIE - which reinforces the theme of family that the book is presenting but sidesteps the romance once again.
The book ultimately does do right by the romance, the themes of family: both with the Buchanans and Blue’s found family and there is a bit of closure surrounding the brewery and Brew Fest. I would have personally liked about five more epilogues though because I like big time closure.
The authors gave Lee his happily ever after and allowed him his redemption with his family at his side. I love Lee now and loved his relationship with his family and Dottie. For that reason and the pacing issue, I’m giving Bad Luck Club 3.5 stars. It is still well worth your time to read. I look forward to reading Molly and Cal’s story next.
WRITING STYLE: 5/5
PLOT: 3/5
WORLD-BUILDING: 5/5
PACING: 3/5
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: 4/5
ROMANCE: 3/5
HEAT: 2/5 (closed door)