Title: Lula does the HulaAuthor: Samantha Mackintosh
Genre: Young Adult
Publication: June 1 2011, Egmont books
Pages: 446, Paperback
Source: Library book! :D
Aloha! I'm Talullah Bird - or Tatty, or Lu. But mostly people call me Lula. So, my big news is...I've finally been kissed. Eeeee! I have an actual, factual boyfriend! At least, I thought I did. But things with the perfect boy aren't going to plan - thanks to his journo gal pal, Evil Jazz. And that's not all. Hoooo no. In a few days I've got to dance the hula in public, put a stop to some seriously serious criminal activity, win a race, and stop Dad from shaming me totally with his weirdiness. Frikkly frik! Where is my normal life? Huh? Where? Please, someone, tell me I'm not jinxed forever...When I saw Lula does the Hula at the library, I thought it looked like a really sweet, fluffy, contemporary read. I was right for the most part, but a fair share amount of the book was actually half murder-mystery. I had a few minor issues with the book, but in the end, I really enjoyed it!
Upon seeing Lula does the Hula at the library I didn't know it was the sequel to the first book, Kisses for Lula. I was going to buy it on the kindle because I NEVER read books out of order, but then I decided I'd rather spend my money on a wish list book, hence buying Starcrossed. >.<
I didn't get that confused seeing as it was the second book and I wouldve thought it was actually a stand alone novel. There were a few parts that I did get a bit confused by but it was shortly followed by an explanation and I could happily continue reading.
The first page didn't grip me as I had hoped, in fact, the first few chapters weren't incredibly exciting, they didn't have me hooked and turning the pages, like Wicked Lovely or Nobody's girl and I almost put the book down to start one of my review books, but I try and go by the rule to finish every book I've started. So I continued with Lula and I'm so glad I did, upon first reading about Lula I may have rated it 2 cupcakes but as I continued reading I just had to pump up the rating to a 4. If you do decide to read LDTH, give it a chance, the start may not grip you but the middle and the end certainly will and if you give up on it, you'll be sorry you had! ;)I adored Lula, she was a bundle of energy and a loveable character. She was happy-go-lucky and I would love to have her as a friend. Through the story she is faced with a lot of issues but she manages to keep her chin up and smile throughout it. I love a strong, determined character and Lula was exactly like that! She was also extremely funny, when I was sick, lying on the couch and reading about Lula's (mis) adventures, I cracked up laughing on several occasions. She is a hilarious character and if you didn't crack up atleast once, well, then there is most definitely something wrong with you...
I also loved the other characters, and after reading Lula does the Hula I feel like they are my own friends. I also love Lula's siblings and the adorable Boodle and Biggins, the great Newfoundland and the tiny duck who become inseparable friends!
Some people have complained that Lula was too hyper and her "frikkly frik" saying got on their nerves. I didn't find Lula the least bit annoying. She was just a normal, happy, energetic, sixteen year old girl whom I loved reading about! I thought it was quite funny and cute when Lula said frikkly frik, and atleast the author was saying frikkly frik rather than the "f and s" word that unfortunately dominate a large amount of YA books these days.
What I also loved about Lula Does the Hula, is that it was quite a clean book. There wasn't sexual content and the only swear word that was used was the "b" - "female dog" word, and that was only said about five times throughout the whole 446 pages. The previous book I read, Nobody's Girl, sadly had quite a few cuss words, which left me a bit disappointed. So thank you very much to the author for not using swear words and sexual content!
The murder mystery part of the story was nail-biting and had me guessing all the way, although I think maybe it should've been used in a separate book, it definitely made the book interesting and sent chills down my spine.
There were really only two problems I had with Lula does the Hula.
1) I felt there were too many ideas crammed into the book. I feel like the author should have stuck to a maximum of two ideas and no more. Sometimes it felt a bit overwhelming as there was so much going on! It had comedy, romance, murder, mystery, hula dancing, jinxes and rowing races. Sometimes this made the story have so much going on that it was verging on boring, however, everything tied up in the end which, when I thought back on it, actually made it one heck of a ride!
2) The romance. It wasn't that the romance was bad, it was actually quite sweet but I just felt that Lula and Jake didn't go well together. He is an eighteen year old journalist and she is a sixteen year old schoolgirl, and when Jazz became involved, you can just see that Lula and Jake's relationship isn't going to last long. I also thought Jake was a bit of a creep and really? Can someone be so oblivious to not noticing his really pretty, eighteen year old girl flat-mate was flirting with him? I think Lula should drop him and find someone her own age as there just wasn't a voluminous amount of chemistry sparking between them.
Other than that, Lula does the Hula was an interesting read, with an adorable main character, a unique and interesting plot, a chilling mystery that had me guessing the whole way and laugh out loud moments. Once you read about Lula, you'll be wanting to read more about this feisty heroine!
I give it: 4/5 CUPCAKES!
