Kindle
$9.99
Available instantly
Audible Logo Audiobook
$0.00
with membership trial
Hardcover
$9.45
Paperback
$5.99
Kindle Price: $9.99

Save $10.00 (50%)

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Audiobook Price: $22.04

Save: $9.05 (41%)

Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

Buy for others

Give as a gift or purchase for a team or group.
Learn more

Buying and sending eBooks to others

  1. Select quantity
  2. Buy and send eBooks
  3. Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs

Follow the author

Julia Claiborne Johnson
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Better Luck Next Time: A Novel Kindle Edition

by Julia Claiborne Johnson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 802 ratings
Editors' pick Best Literature & Fiction
See all formats and editions
A 1930s cowboy learns about friendship & love while working at a Reno divorce ranch in this comic novel by the bestselling author of Be Frank with Me.

It’s 1938, and women seeking a quick, no-questions split from their husbands head to the “divorce capital of the world,” Reno, Nevada. There’s one catch: they have to wait six-weeks to become “residents.” Many of these wealthy, soon-to-be divorcees flock to the Flying Leap, a dude ranch that caters to their every need. 

Twenty-four-year-old Ward spent one year at Yale before his family lost everything in the Great Depression; now he’s earning an honest living as a ranch hand at the Flying Leap. Admired for his dashing good looks—“Cary Grant in cowboy boots”—Ward thinks he’s got the Flying Leap’s clients all figured out. But two new guests are about to upend everything he thinks he knows: Nina, a St. Louis heiress and amateur pilot back for her third divorce, and Emily, whose bravest moment in life was leaving her cheating husband back in San Francisco and driving herself to Reno.

A novel about divorce, marriage, and everything that comes in between (money, class, ambition, and opportunity), Better Luck Next Time is a hilarious yet poignant examination of the ways friendship can save us, love can destroy us, and the family we create can be stronger than the family we come from.

“Doesn’t a romantic comedy set on a 1930s Nevada dude ranch teeming with about-to-be-divorced women owe a certain debt to the era’s big-screen classics? Then again, it’s hard to believe a cinematic version could be any more fun.” —New York Times Book Review
Previous page
  1. Print length
    304 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Mariner Books
  5. Publication date
    January 5, 2021
  6. File size
    5913 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
Next page
Add a debit or credit card to save time when you check out
Convenient and secure with 2 clicks. Add your card

From the Publisher

Steven Rowley
Mary Pauline Lowry Lydia Fitzpatrick
Christine Clancy
Julia Claiborne Johnson banner card
Better Luck Next Time comp card Be Frank With Me
Better Luck Next Time Be Frank With Me
Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
802
4.3 out of 5 stars
4,567
Price $9.45 $9.20

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review


Editors' pick: Charmingly told through the eyes of a ranch hand, this bighearted story offers hard-won wisdom and leaves readers smiling at the end."—Adrian Liang, Amazon Editor

Review

"Doesn’t a romantic comedy set on a 1930s Nevada dude ranch teeming with about-to-be-divorced women owe a certain debt to the era’s big-screen classics? Then again, it’s hard to believe a cinematic version could be any more fun." — New York Times Book Review

"Johnson’s rollicking comedy sizzles, thanks to the immensely appealing voice of its aging narrator...brims with the clever banter and farcical situations of a classic Capra film." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Do you want to read something funny?  Let’s say, a novel set at a divorce ranch in Reno in the 1930s?  A book with memorably eccentric characters, sparkling dialogue, a satisfying plot twist, and some romance and sex?  A feel-good literary comedy/western?  Here it is, then, the book you've been looking for: Julia Claiborne Johnson’s Better Luck Next Time." — Julie Schumacher, author of  Dear Committee Members and The Shakespeare Requirement

"Rollicking, nostalgic, wistful and wise, Better Luck Next Time is another gem from Julia Claiborne Johnson. Like a modern-day Anita Loos (but with more heart), Johnson spins an irresistible yarn that captures Depression-era disappointments, hopes, and determination, and paints a touching story of how even a life gone wrong can be a life well lived." — Karen Dukess, author of The Last Book Party

“Hilarious and clever.”  — New York Post

"Julia Claiborne Johnson's real skill is a literary sleight of hand: creating humorous characters with big hearts, then using them to deliver a story with a surprising emotional wallop. There were tears from heartbreak and joy! My face still hurts from smiling." — Steven Rowley, author of Lily and the Octopus and The Editor

"Invites comparisons to Shakespeare’s madcap comedies...Like Shakespeare with his fairies, Johnson uses her own brand of magic to bring these characters to life and to remind us that love often requires a second chance." — Chattanooga Free Press

"Channels Frank Capra’s screwball comedies...There is a delightful sense of closure in the way Johnson wraps up this shiny package, which arrives just after New Year’s like a late holiday gift." — Christian Science Monitor

"An engrossing portrait of 1930s Reno...witty and charming." — Booklist

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B086ZT698G
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Mariner Books (January 5, 2021)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 5, 2021
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 5913 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 802 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Julia Claiborne Johnson

Julia Claiborne Johnson

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Julia Claiborne Johnson grew up on a farm in Tennessee, attended the University of Virginia and studied creative writing at Boston University. She worked at Mademoiselle and Glamour magazines before moving to Los Angeles with her comedy writer husband. They have two children.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
802 global ratings
Refreshing and new historical fiction
4 Stars
Refreshing and new historical fiction
Looking for historical fiction that’s outside of the WWII era? Look no further!Better Luck Next Time takes place in the late 30s in Reno, Nevada. The Flying Leap ranch is a “divorce ranch,” a place where woman can stay for 6 weeks, long enough to qualify for Nevada residency. They can then file for divorce. This is one of the fastest ways you could get divorced.The story is told by Ward, a ranch hand, who works at the Flying Leap. They help keep the women who stay happy and entertained. He befriends two women, Nina and Emily and the book is a look at their time at the ranch.I really enjoyed this book. This is not something I’ve ever heard of before this book so it was very interesting to read something new and fresh. I thought the writing itself was very good and there was a lot of thought put into this book.4 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Thank you to @williammorrowbooks, @customhousebooks, and @netgalley for my advanced reader copy. Better Luck Next Time is out now!
Hide
Thank you for your feedback
Sorry, there was an error
Sorry we couldn't load the review

Top reviews from the United States

Love Cook Books
5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic book!
Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2022
Verified Purchase
I read "Be Frank with me" and was so moved that when I saw this book in an airport I was thrilled to have another opportunity to enjoy Julia Claiborne Johnson's creativity. Better Luck Next Time tells a story so relatable that you feel like you are part of the tex - and everyone needs to meet a friend like Nina. Truly worth reading and rereading.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
mz johansen
4.0 out of 5 stars Well done
Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2021
Verified Purchase
What an interesting read! The time is 1938 Reno Nevada where quickie divorces require a 6 week residency. Scene: a dude ranch for soon-to-be divorcees who need an address for 6 weeks. Cast of characters: Ward a delectable ranch hand with a cleft in his chin and a sparkle in his eyes; Max and Margaret, the owners of the ranch, Nina a nimble aviatrix at the ranch for the third time and Emily, a wealthy woman, waiting to divorce he cheating spouse, plus an assorted cast of characters who can warm your heart or make your blood boil.

Told from the perspective of an elderly doctor’s recollections the plot unfolds quite beautifully really. Who finds love, who loses it, who stops caring about it? Read this book and enjoy the story telling!
5 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
DT
3.0 out of 5 stars Divorce ranch in 1938
Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2024
A former doctor looks back at his time working on a dude ranch in Reno, Nevada in 1938. In those days, it wasn’t easy to get divorced. If you were a Reno resident, you could get a “quickie” divorce, so these places sprang up for women who would have to reside there for six weeks to be considered residents and eligible to get a divorce. Ward was a young man then and recalls the shenanigans of some of the residents. This is an interesting idea for a novel. The author bases this story on the screwball comedies of the time, but the story doesn’t really go anywhere other than a romance which makes the ending poignant. I think this would be better as a movie. But it was a mildly enjoyable and amusing snapshot of the times.
Helpful
 Report
Magi
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic read!
Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2021
Verified Purchase
What a fantastic read! Makes me nostalgic for an earlier, more innocent time. While the divorce ranch setting is an interesting backdrop the true stars of the story are the warmly written characters and the basic human decency of the narrator. Its a great tale, well-told and I finished with a glowing warmth in my heart and a tear in my eye.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Vermonter
4.0 out of 5 stars I guess I liked it?
Reviewed in the United States on November 10, 2021
Verified Purchase
The story was good, the characters were well developed, the dialogue was good, and I had never heard of these divorce ranches in the 30's. Maybe the novel resonated because of having gone through a divorce myself. I found it odd that the author used a male narrator, and I found the very casual style of this male narrator's direct chat with the reader kind of annoying ... but putting that aside, I enjoyed reading it.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Tiffany Yates
5.0 out of 5 stars A setting and characters to get lost in
Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2021
Verified Purchase
I've been a huge fan of the author's since Be Frank with Me stole my heart. This one is so different, but an absolute lark of a story, with surprising emotional punch. The 1930s divorce/dude-ranch setting is a character all on its own (the author's personal family connection to it in her author's note is fascinating), but it's also populated with larger-than-life characters who leap off the page, and peppered with Johnson's signature humor. A delightful read--Johnson never disappoints.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
William L. McGee and Sandra V. McGee, Authors
4.0 out of 5 stars Little has been written about the Reno divorce ranch era, 1931 to the 1950s
Reviewed in the United States on January 19, 2021
Verified Purchase
Kudos to Julia Claiborne Johnson for setting her novel in this era. She's introducing generations to a slice of remarkable history in the contemporary American West few know about today. I know something of this era. From 1947 to 1949, my late husband was the head dude wrangler on Nevada's most famous dude & divorce ranch, the Flying M.E., twenty miles south of Reno. We recaptured the history and his stories in "The Divorce Seekers - A Photo Memoir of a Nevada Dude Wrangler" (on Amazon). Thank you, Ms. Johnson, for bringing this period to light. And I love the cover!
12 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Rosalie Gartner
2.0 out of 5 stars I didn’t like this book - last chapter was good.
Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2022
Verified Purchase
I didn’t like this book. Only the last chapter was good,
Helpful
 Report
Report an issue

Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report