BOOK REVIEW: Did I Mention I Won the Lottery? by Julie Butterfield

I came across Did I Mention I Won the Lottery? by Julie Butterfield on Amazon. The title intrigued me; lottery stories often do. It's a question we've all asked ourselves at some point, isn't it? If you won the lottery, what would you do? What would you spend it on? Where would you go?

And just who would you tell?

For Rebecca Miles, her normal life is about to be changed forever when she scoops 15.7 million pounds on the lottery. 15.7 million pounds! It's a dream come true - all that money, and it's all hers. It's enough to change her life, and that of her husband Daniel. That is, once she tells him...

Despite living comfortably in terms of wealth, Rebecca's life hasn't exactly been dreamy. Even though she enjoys working part-time at the deli with her two great friends, each night she returns home to grumpy rants from Daniel; a condescending, over-confident salesman who acts as though the world owes him a favour. After years of clearing up after him, Rebecca has seemingly settled into a routine of servitude, a far cry from one half of the happy couple they were years before, when their children were younger.

Just days after scooping her big win, Rebecca has already treated herself to a gorgeous new house in her home city, luxury hotel stays, a new car and a brand new wardrobe. The problem? She still hasn't told Daniel. Continuously telling herself she'll do it soon, she finds herself putting it off day after day. Soon she's leading a secret double life - as Daniel's downtrodden wife half the week, and escaping to her other existence as a designer-clad millionaire in her mansion as soon as her husband leaves for his golf trips.

And as time passes, Rebecca finds it harder and harder to break the news to Daniel. Especially when a possible new venture comes her way, one that could help both Rebecca and her mother. But it's only a matter of time before the secret's out...

I really enjoyed this book, and I liked Rebecca. At first, she seemed very weak, giving in to Daniel's every whim, having given up on arguing years before. But she also reveals herself as strong, sensible and extremely kind-hearted, and this journey was one of the elements I loved best about this novel. I would love to go into more detail here, and admittedly I did write a more lengthy review until I realised I'd be giving a lot of the ending away. So I'm going to stop right here.

One thing I love about lottery stories is that there are so many possibilities. The story can go in many, many directions. Money can change a person, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse, and I always love finding out how the author has explored these ideas. Julie Butterfield has done this wonderfully, and I'm looking forward to reading her second book.

Rating: 5/5