The Biology of Luck by Jacob M. Appel

The Biology of Luck by Jacob M. Appel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Odd-job queen Starshine Hart is about to go on somebody else’s perfect date. At 29, the usually carefree Starshine has realized that it is easier to start sleeping with a man than to stop. Her lovers include one of the last underground members of the Weathermen and the dilettante heir to a lawn chair magnate. Both men have staked their romantic future on her. Her only respite is her impending dinner with the nonthreatening but unattractive tour guide Larry Bloom. But Larry, too, has a stake in her future. He has written a book about their impending dinner in which he fantasizes about Starshine’s life on the day he wins her heart.

The book switches back and forth between Larry's view of the day and Chapters from his book..


I really liked this book. I found myself not being able to put it down, once I got started. I even found myself thinking, that this would be an excellent movie.. I could see it in my head. I loved the characters. There were many "small part" characters, but yet they were just as complex as the main characters. I loved how all the characters eventually linked together somehow...

The only thing I didn't like was the ending. I'm glad Jacob left it open for other boks, but I really hate not knowing! I hope he puts a sequel out soon...

With that being said, I felt Jacob did an amazing job putting this story together! I would recommend it to all my friends!

Jacob M. Appel's first novel, The Man Who Wouldn't Stand Up, won the Dundee International Book Award in 2012. His short story collection, Scouting for the Reaper, won the 2012 Hudson Prize. He has published short fiction in more than two hundred literary journals including Agni, Conjunctions, Gettysburg Review, Southwest Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, and West Branch. His work has been short listed for the O. Henry Award (2001), Best American Short Stories (2007, 2008), Best American Essays (2011, 2012), and received "special mention" for the Pushcart Prize in 2006, 2007, 2011 and 2013.

Jacob holds a B.A. and an M.A. from Brown University, an M.A. and an M.Phil. from Columbia University, an M.S. in bioethics from the Alden March Bioethics Institute of Albany Medical College, an M.D. from Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons, an M.F.A. in creative writing from New York University, an M.F.A. in playwriting from Queens College, an M.P.H. from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. He currently practices psychiatry in New York City.

*I recieved a complimentary copy of this book, from the author, in exchange for my honest review and opinons.*

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