Rating: 
Summary: Decision?: Laugh, cry, get angry.. so I did all three...
Review: This review is based on the Hardcover 1997 First Edition, publisher Albert A. Knopf Inc. AT FIRST GLANCE of the beginning pages in this writing, this reader thought she was in for a "bad read". I decided to stick with it; glad I did because the book is funny and conversely aggravating. I awarded this book four stars - could not give it the fifth star because there was a small part of me which could not conceive that some of the events in this story actually would happen! But, that is what writing and reading imagination is for.... right?! INGREDIENTS FOR A FUN READ: Start off in a town named Grange, in Florida, where miraculous manifestations occur attracting tourists from a wide distance. Take a $28 million dollar lottery; 2 tickets with the same numbers win; meaning a $14/14 million split. Combine greed, prejudice, bigotry and all the vices you can think of... then add the female winner JoLayne Lucks, who chose her playing numbers over a five-year period -- each winning lottery number representative of her age in years when loves were in her life. INCLUDE two partners Chub (a.k.a. Onus Gillespie) and Bodean Gazzer, the other winning ticket owners for the $28 million split. Mix in their need of wanting claim to the whole deal - the $28 mil - they want the money for purposes of the formation of a underground militia - named by the partners -- the White Clarion Aryans, a.k.a. the WCA - a militia they believe necessary for ready action "before NATO troops invade America". STIR in the partners plot to find JoLayne Lucks; they do locate her in the town of Grange, mistreat her badly, and abscond with her winning ticket. The partners get their first militia recruit -- Shiner, an employee of the store which sold JoLayne Lucks' winning ticket. Shiner is allowed to join Bode and Chub in the pursuit, on the condition that Shiner agrees to deny that he sold a winning ticket to JoLayne -- it is part of the deal for joining the WCA. So far, the "ingredients" begin to mix well and look promising to the WCA members to go forth to form their militia. OKAY... NOW enter the hero Tom Krome, journalist extraordinaire, assigned by his media employer to do the lottery winnings story. Krome enters the scene with his own meandering trail of troubles - a judge out to get him for fooling around with his wife; Tom's wife continues to dodge an attorney on her trail to serve her with divorce papers. Tom locates JoLayne Lucks, finding her beat up and her winning ticket stolen. Tom agrees to assist JoLayne in the chase to find Chub and Bode to get back her winning ticket. PREPARE in the meantime that "back at the ranch", other characters add salt and pepper to enliven even more the shenanigans, adventures, and activities to add to a building climax to this winning story THIS STORY strikes up emotions and imagination for readers to stick with the book deserving of an open, objective mind. It also accomplishes a goal -- giving the reader thoughts on how ridiculous and destructive vices can be, along with characters responding to the "call of duty" to assist in circumstances right through the "Epiphany". All in all the mix of ingredients make progress to an endearing ending! MY APOLOGIES and thanks to the author Carl Hiaasen that it took so long for this reader to get to his 1997, First Edition novel, overall good writing, which I located in my stash of many books just waiting in nooks & crannies to be read, while still obtaining more books from the marketplace! (What can I say? I'm an avid reader a.k.a. biblioholic. THANKS also to Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. for publishing this above-the-ordinary novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Lucky Reader
Review: This was my first Carl Hiaasen book, so maybe that's why I'm so fond of it. But I don't think so. The hero/heroine are delightful. The villains despicable. The end of the villains delicious. I've recently read Striptease, and while good, it PALES in comparison. If you liked Striptease (the book, not the movie, for Erin of writ can dance, unlike Doomee More) you will adore this book.
Rating:
Summary: Fun!
Review: This was the first book I have read by Carl Hiaasen - and I was not disappointed. Lucky You was just ... fun! If you want an exciting thriller that you can't put down and will keep you up at night, this book isn't for you. But if you want an exciting read that, at times, makes you laugh - read this book. The characters are just fun. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to read for the pure joy of reading.
Rating:
Summary: Lucky me
Review: Whenever you've read a lot of books by one author (and Hiaasen has written quite a few), you tend to get nervous. Well, the first three or four were great, but what about this next one, you think to yourself? It's like waiting for lightening to strike--you know it's got to happen some time and you dread it. You KNOW you're going to finally run across a book by this author that you don't like. You KNOW he's finally going to run out of steam. But he doesn't. I'm happy to report that LUCKY YOU is just as good as any of the other Hiaasen books (think SKIN TIGHT or HOOT) and this guy just keeps going like the Energizer bunny. With the same great writing, style, humor, and insight into the south that are found in Jackson McCrae's books (THE BARK OF THE DOGWOOD) Hiaasen gives us a wonderful if not disturbing portrait of the wacky characters that make up the southern-most region of our United States. Few living outside this region will recognize that Hiaasen isn't making this stuff up--for some of us, it's too real! All I can say is, buy this book and read it. If you're fortunate to, then . . . Lucky you.
Rating:
Summary: Lucky me
Review: Whenever you've read a lot of books by one author (and Hiaasen has written quite a few), you tend to get nervous. Well, the first three or four were great, but what about this next one, you think to yourself? It's like waiting for lightening to strike--you know it's got to happen some time and you dread it. You KNOW you're going to finally run across a book by this author that you don't like. You KNOW he's finally going to run out of steam. But he doesn't. I'm happy to report that LUCKY YOU is just as good as any of the other Hiaasen books (think SKIN TIGHT or HOOT) and this guy just keeps going like the Energizer bunny. With the same great writing, style, humor, and insight into the south that are found in Jackson McCrae's books (THE BARK OF THE DOGWOOD) Hiaasen gives us a wonderful if not disturbing portrait of the wacky characters that make up the southern-most region of our United States. Few living outside this region will recognize that Hiaasen isn't making this stuff up--for some of us, it's too real! All I can say is, buy this book and read it. If you're fortunate to, then . . . Lucky you.
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