You Should Be So Lucky: A Novel

I’ve been voraciously reading Cat Sebastian’s novels forever and it’s amazing to see them get better and better. You Should Be So Lucky made me so invested in baseball even when I knew nothing about it.

The romance is immaculate but beyond that, the characters are so alive, 3D and human, you’re rooting for them all the way. There’s grit and resilience triumphing over failure, there’s hope after terrible grieving over losing loved ones (yes, there were tears).

The only awful thing about the book was reading the last page and there were no more pages after that.

This book is just so brimming with humanity. All the things in life; the challenges, the successes… what really matters is being true and being happy. Especially when being true is in many ways not possible, where being erased is a fact of life. The story is complex, but simple. Quietly eviscerating of the inequities. But also celebrates all the beauty in life. The story is constantly showing how much was denied, but also how much these people had, could have, anyway. And what matters and what doesn’t. And how sometimes what is missing can be a blessing. Heartwarming while acknowledging all that is depressing - treating each person and situation with gentle grace. Charming, so charming. Funny. So much is so, so profound. About so many things - crushing grief, authenticity, happiness, the weight and impossibility in hiding. This book continuously surprised me with the seriousness and lightness of characters and arcs and stories. There were multiple times throughout where I thought to myself, “this here is perfect”, with similarities in that balance and those perfect moments to Ted Lasso.

Cat Sebastian is the queen of my heart! I’m a puddle of goo for her midcentury boys, and Mark and Eddie are no exception.

We met Mark Bailey in We Could Be So Good, he works at the paper and persisted in gifting Nick with queer literature. When we begin his story, he’s deep in mourning for his late boyfriend - withdrawn from life, he has mostly quit his job but still lurks around the office. One day Andy gets the idea to send him to do a weekly feature on Eddie O’Leary, a baseball player deep in both a PR scandal and a batting slump. Both men are in crisis, and they find unexpected kinship in one another.

I adore the unique grumpy x sunshine dynamic these two have! Mark is prickly and biting, but essentially kind. And while Eddie is sunny and easygoing for the most part, he has a hell of a temper. Watching them learn to support and trust one another was completely lovely. The writing is as immersive as always, expertly building this world of dreamers and lovers in a time when to be true to themselves was a jail sentence.

As with her other books, these are what I’d call cracked door spice, but the emotional impact is weighty and the tension delicious. Every moment and character carries significance to the story, and I can’t get enough of these journeys. I recommend this for anyone, but fans of sports romance, historical, and/or Cat Sebastian won’t be disappointed!

(This one also frequently references one of my favorite authors of all time, Shirley Jackson, so that was a delight!)

You Should Be So Lucky is a historical 1960s gay romance between a newspaper columnist and a baseball player. Mark Bailey is still reeling from the loss of his lover when he is assigned to write a series of articles about the new hotheaded rookie pitcher. Eddie O’Leary is in a slump after being transferred from his old team to New York where he is being shunned by his new team who he very publicly maligned them. These two lonely men find companionship with each other and struggle to keep things professional.

This book was just so cute, so adorable, and so charming I couldn’t help but smile throughout. It’s low angst, low conflict, and just a cozy slow-burn romance with no third act break up. I could not ask for more. Is it perhaps too idealistic and optimistic? Yes, but I welcome this pure queer joy.

I know next to nothing about baseball, but it did not matter because these two men just had me completely on their side from the get go. Mark learns to love again and accept the love that is given to him despite the many seemingly valid reasons against it because sometimes love isn’t logical. Eddie learns that life and love isn’t always perfect, but that doesn’t mean he can’t still live and love in an imperfect world. They exemplify the grumpy+sunshine, rottweiller+golden retriever tropes to perfection.

You Should Be So Lucky delivers another period romance full of queer joy.

Like Sebastian’s prior foray into New York journalism at the dawn of the ‘60s, her prose is crisp, her storytelling un-put-downable, and her gay romance sweet and delicious. The period details and flavor of what it meant to be gay at that moment do justice to the queer history Sebastian brings to life.

As a professor of literature who specialized in lgbtq history, I can unashamedly confess that her writing, the story, and the gosh-darned adorable and irresistible romance of two men falling in love make me pray for another installment and soon.

What a sweet, creative and interesting love story. Mark is a book critic who only writes a review once every three months. As a challenge he is to write a feature about a shortstop new to the NY team who is in a bit of a slump. Eddie O’Leary is even farther in the closet as a professional athlete in the 1950’s.

Part historical fiction, part queer rom-com, I grew to love both characters separately and as a couple. Wonderful setting, authentic dialogue, and a sweeping love story. It’s a 3/10 on the S M U T meter, enough for transparency without being egregious. The real story here is the connection of these characters and their journey to determine how much of themselves to show each other… and how much of themselves to show the world.

Sorry (not sorry) to the homophobes who love romance, what a pity you will have to miss the best rom com of the summer.

I think I finally understand the lyrics, "I wanna know what love is, I want you to show me". I am mostly kidding, but if you want to know what love is read this book. I truly did not think We Could Be So Good could be topped in my heart but this book has eclipsed it a smidge. This story is absolutely fantastic and it's truly hard to put into words just how awesome the experience of this book will bring you. As a black woman in an interracial marriage, this book spoke to my soul. While I am been abundantly lucky that I love in 2024, I can still deeply feel the emotions of forbidden love in 1960. The way Mark and Eddie navigate their prejudice toward each other to friends to more is done in the way it happens in real life. The push and pull of society, past hurt and an unknown future are woven throughout to paint a life worth living. I knew the basics of this story would draw me in but from start to finish this story kept me in awe. Truly unmatched brilliance !

It's 1960 in NYC. The Dodgers have bailed in favor of the West Coast. An expansion team arrives to fill the void, bringing with it a collection of worn out vets, odd-balls and a 22-year old phenom who doesn't want to leave his Midwest home. A slightly jaded and grieving journalist is assigned to cover the reluctant team star as the latter struggles with a batting slump and living down public statements he's made about his new home. The pair gradually settles into a relationship that starts asprofessional and gradually becomes friendly and much more. The novel is nicely character-driven, but there is a lot for the reader to learn about professional baseball as well the social environment of the times. As the relationship that is the focus of the story turns romantic, the forced public invisibility of same sex couples hangs heavy of the two men. An intelligent, if somewhat verbose discussion of the dilemma Is a big part of the novel's second half. There is a non-specific, but happy ending to this story that is well-earned and suggests a possible sequel that deals with the inevitable outing of the pair--still some years away from Stonewall.