Review of Lady Luck (Colorado Mountain #3) by Kristen Ashley

Lady Luck is the third book in the Colorado Mountain series.

Lexie Berry, on an errand from a man named Shift, greets Ty Walker as he walks out of prison in California. His idea of what happens between them within the next few days shocks her, but she agrees to his terms as a way out from under Shift.

Ty was framed and served five years for something he didn't do. Lexie will mean someone in his corner when the time comes for vengeance, so he takes her home to Carnal, Colorado. She's welcomed by Ty's friends with open arms. Lexie is determined to stop him from risking his life and freedom by taking on those who framed him. But dirty cops and criminals are after him, and by extension, Lexie, too.

This novel took a turn early on I didn't expect. Ty and Lexie's relationship has a very unconventional start, and farce turns to love in a short time. Their love story was a joy to read, and their ups and downs were tied to my own emotions. I cried with them and laughed with them and thoroughly enjoyed my time with he stoic Ty and goofy Lexie.

I think the issues tied to Ty's race were a bit off in many ways. He went to prison because a racist white man didn't like being bested at poker by a Black man, but race was just a plot device carried out via stereotype. The cops were white and the criminals Black as just one instance. It makes me wonder if Ms. Ashley talked to any Black people about their experiences before writing this book. I'm not sure the plot would have been much different without the race element. If something is included, especially something big like racism, it needs to be there for a reason, and it didn't feel necessary to tell the story.

Lexie was well-developed, and I liked that race never came up between them, but if I were in a relationship with a Black person, I would be outraged at the experiences my partner would inevitably go through, but since Ty didn't go through those common (albeit infuriating and completely immoral) things, we didn't get to see Lexie's protective streak come out more than a couple of times. If you're going to include race in a novel, it should be realistic.

The issue of race is my only beef with the novel.

This is the second book to take place in Carnal, Colorado. The town was well-established in the last book, and this book merely built off it. I again had a solid picture of the town and thoroughly enjoyed seeing the same characters from the last book in a new light, especially Tate and Laurie. The new characters like Julius, Angel, and Ella were fantastic additions, and I enjoyed every moment I spent in Carnal.

Descriptions were fantastic like always with Ms. Ashley, and dialog was great, too. She avoids cringey romance dialog for the most part, which is refreshing. The sex scenes were steamy, and the developing love engaging.

The book was emotional and funny, and I loved it.

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