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The lottery is full of drama and intrigue. Lives are changed. Families ripped apart. Government budgets hang in the balance. There's our fascination with random chance. Sometimes, there's even wild, multinational crime, and the stakes couldn't be higher.
It's no surprise that tons of fiction novels revolve around the lottery. The games have inspired dystopian worlds, capers, mysteries, family dramas, and more - and many of these books have become true classics.
Sit back and enjoy these 10 works of lottery fiction.
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson
This classic short story is one of the most haunting works of fiction of all time. Written by California author Shirley Jackson in 1948, the story meticulously describes a small town where the people are gearing up for an annual harvest.
To ensure prosperity for the coming year, the townspeople implement a lottery, where one person is chosen - but the prize isn't a lottery jackpot, it's a brutal, horrifying ritual. The story first ran in the New Yorker, prompting both outrage and critical acclaim.
Malibu Motel by Chaunceton Bird
Based on a true story, Malibu Motel is the 2019 tale of an unscrupulous lottery winner named Caish Calloway. Living the dream, Caish wins $124 million in the California Lottery and surrounds themselves with fast cars and wild parties.
He or she (it's not specified) is greedy, self-centered, and reckless - yet somehow lovable as they navigate the dramatic ups and downs of a lottery win. It's a mad read that serves as a rowdy antidote to the “rags to riches hero” lottery trope.
Lucky You by Carl Hiaasen
Acclaimed crime humor writer Carl Hiaasen wrote the lottery drama Lucky You in 1997. In the story, two parties win a huge lottery jackpot: a Black woman environmentalist and a white supremacist conspiracy theorist. Unsurprisingly, the latter doesn't want to share the jackpot with the former - and the parties wrangle for the money in a whirlwind of violence, chases, and legal drama.
Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith
What if you buy your crush a lottery ticket as a gift - and they actually win - $140 million? That's what happens to 18-year-old Alice in the 2017 young adult novel Windfall, who buys a ticket for her friend Teddy, whom she's in love with. But unsurprisingly, the win changes Teddy and their dynamic, overnight.
Jackpot by Nic Stone
Nic Stone, author of the New York Times #1 Bestseller “Dear Martin,” penned this 2019 young adult story that centers around a lottery win. Rico works as a cashier and takes care of her little brother. But one day, her luck turns around. She sells a winning lottery ticket - but the winner hasn't claimed the prize. She decides to search for the winning ticket with the help of her rich classmate, Zan. What results is a whirlwind romance anchored in hope and class struggles.
The Manor House: A Novel by Gilly Macmillan
New York Times Bestselling UK-based author Gilly Macmillan writes a gripping tale about the dark side of winning the lottery. A couple wins a huge jackpot. But when they buy a creepy house with their winnings, tragedy strikes. They may have gotten lucky once, but now, they're a target for the worst possible horrors.
The Lottery Winners by AJ Wills
In this thriller, a couple wins an enormous amount of money in the lottery. Just when they're ready to enjoy their spoils, however, a widower named Gabriel Salt begs them to use the money to bring his pregnant wife's killer to justice.
The couple must make a choice - and both paths have terrifying consequences.
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
The wildly popular dystopian Hunger Games book trilogy, launched in 2008, is based around a deadly ritual where two children must battle to the death every year. The children are chosen by lottery from two glass balls that contain the names of every eligible participant.
The trilogy was adapted into a popular movie series starring Jennifer Lawrence, and stands as a metaphor for the brutality of power and control.
The Lottery Winner by Mary Higgins Clark
Mary Higgins Clark, one of the most prolific, successful thriller writers in history, tells the 1995 story of repeat character Alvirah Meehan, a New Yorker who used to clean houses - but then, she won a lottery jackpot. It's part of an Alivrah Meehan collection that includes the books “The Body in the Closet” and “Death on the Cape.” In “The Lottery Winner,” Alvirah and her lover, Willy, retreat to a spa, only to encounter a jewel thief.
An Embarrassment of Riches by Gerald Hansen
Author Gerald Hansen captures a funny Irish family drama in the 2019 novel “An Embarrassment of Riches,” which kicks off his hit Derry Women novel series. A lottery winner must fight off her scamming sister-in-law in order to maintain her newfound wealth and her peace. The saga plays out in endearing, Irish-infused family moments, in court, through comedy and romance.
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