“A Little Luck,” written by Claudia Piñeiro and translated by Frances Riddle, is a fiction novel about lies, the weight of guilt, and how complex life truly is. The book begins as a woman named Mary Lohan is forced, by a work trip, to travel back to the suburb of Buenos Aires where she spent much of her life, but had left 20 years prior after a terrible accident. She has made a new life for herself in Boston, and buried the memories of what occurred, but she is forced to confront them as she comes face to face with the very people she tried to forget.
This novel is written as if Lohan was describing the trip herself, and the scenes often bleed into flashbacks of her memories. This helps the reader to understand just how complicated it is for her to be back in Argentina. Most of what the reader learns is about how Lohan is in the present day, but also how she has changed over the years. She is unrecognizable to many of her former neighbors and, in the flashback scenes, often feels like an entirely different person. Before the reader ever figures out what happened 20 years ago, we understand how much it shaped Lohan and how complex of a character she is. In comparison, the other characters are less detailed and we often only learn about them through the lens of the role they played in Lohan’s life, which is my only gripe with the novel.
The writing style is descriptive, but not flowery, and can feel blunt at times. Many of the sentences can be best described as sharp, because of how they concisely convey very particular emotions and ideas. This results in a very short novel — only around 200 pages — where each chapter is packed with thematic ideas and plot development, making it a very fun read. The past and present are woven together into a seamless story and every character is rendered in all of their complexities, showing just how skilled of a writer Piñeiro is.
Many of Piñeiro’s novels are mystery or crime, and that is reflected in the plot and pacing of the book, which are reminiscent of a mystery novel. Suspense builds as the reader tries to figure out what caused Lohan to leave Argentina, though it is balanced amidst reflective scenes. The lies and regret of the characters continue to stack up throughout the novel until it all collapses and the characters are forced to finally tell each other the truth.
This would be a great read for those who love complicated characters, stories with no right or wrong, but many shades of grey, ones that focus on the complexities of family, and short but insightful reads. Ultimately, it focuses on the radiating effects trauma can have, how any moment can shape our lives, and how we are all constant works in progress. “A Little Luck” is such an enjoyable and fast paced read that you won’t want to put it down until the end, and you are left with the perfect amount of thoughts and questions.