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<p>&#8220;Luckiest Girl Alive&#8221; is the latest novel that I&#8217;ve seen which claims to be similar to Gillian Flynn&#8217;s &#8220;Gone Girl.&#8221; I see very little similarity, with the exception of the word &#8220;girl&#8221; in the title.</p><p>But that doesn&#8217;t mean that &#8220;Luckiest Girl Alive&#8221; isn&#8217;t a decent book; it just isn&#8217;t &#8220;Gone Girl&#8221; or even a thriller.</p><p>The novel follows Ani (pronounced Ah-nee), a girl who appears to have it all. She&#8217;s in her late 20s, works for a popular women&#8217;s magazine in Manhattan and is engaged to the wealthy and WASPy Luke Harrison. They live in a gorgeous Tribeca apartment and are planning a fabulous wedding.</p><p>However, Ani is starting to feel uncertain about her incredible life. Her past traumas are beginning to rise up and haunt her present, especially as she is asked to participate in a documentary about a horrific day from her high school experience.</p><p>Early in the book, Ani&#8217;s past is kept secret, so she comes across as an immensely unlikable character. She seems like a spoiled brat who cares about nothing but how she looks and how wealthy she and Luke are. She obsesses over her appearance and money: having the latest designer clothes and accessories and fitting into a size zero are all that seem important to her.</p><p>Slowly, Ani&#8217;s past is revealed. Her real name is TifAni FaNelli. She grew up in the Mainline, a wealthy collection of towns outside of Philadelphia. However, she lived more on the outskirts of the richer neighborhoods. Raised by a social climbing mother determined to have the best (and a distant father), TifAni begins her freshman year at Bradley, a prestigious prep school.</p><p>She quickly falls into friendships with the popular kids, a typically nasty group of teenagers. One night, she makes some bad decisions at a party that lead to devastating consequences for her. That party set into motion a series of events that culminates in a horrific incident which changes her life forever.</p><p>Once her past is revealed, her present personality is more understandable (although hardly more likeable). She can&#8217;t change her past, but can&#8217;t quite forget it either. Everything she is now was formed because of her experience at Bradley. She built a facade to avoid being a victim ever again, believing that money and success will always protect her.</p><p>Taking part in a documentary about the incident seems like the ideal way to move on. She can appear onscreen, looking successful and gorgeous and rocking a giant engagement ring to prove that her life has turned out perfectly, despite the situations that marred her earlier days. But will that success really protect her, especially as she is starting to feel that the life she built for herself isn&#8217;t what she really wants?</p><p>Ani&#8217;s story is devastating, but sadly all too relatable these days. Her personality makes more sense by the end of the book, but it&#8217;s a tough slog to get through the early parts. The chapters switch back and forth from past to present. The past is more of a page turner as the story builds toward the mysterious incident that change Ani&#8217;s life. In the present, it&#8217;s hard to root for a seemingly vapid protagonist.</p><p>When Ani travels home for the documentary, the novel picks up quite a bit, but that doesn&#8217;t happen until more than halfway through the book. I picked this book because it was described as a psychological thriller. &#8220;Luckiest Girl Alive&#8221; isn&#8217;t a challenging book; it&#8217;s not a bad read, it just isn&#8217;t what it&#8217;s advertised to be. Don&#8217;t bother with this one if you&#8217;re looking for the next &#8220;Gone Girl.&#8221; Grab one of Flynn&#8217;s earlier novels instead.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">&#8220;The Luckiest Girl&#8221; is written by Jessica Knoll and explores the main character&#8217;s past and how it affects her current life situation. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/web1_LuckiestGirl.jpg</photo1><caption1>&#8220;The Luckiest Girl&#8221; is written by Jessica Knoll and explores the main character&#8217;s past and how it affects her current life situation. </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Dorothy Sasso</p><p>On the Books</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p>&#8220;Luckiest Girl Alive&#8221;</p><p>Author: Jessica Knoll</p><p>Page Number: 350</p><p>Publisher: Simon and Schuster</p><p>Rating:&#9830;&#9830;&#9830;</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Dorothy Sasso is a former Soap Opera Digest writer and a private school teacher. She is busy reading books and raising her daughter.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

On the Books: “The Luckiest Girl,” by Jessica Knoll, is a tepid thriller that fails to please