Historical fiction set at the time of the American overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy. Interesting subject that I knew little about, but the story of the beautiful orphan sent to live with her aunt & wicked uncle after her father’s death and the love triangle that develops once she arrives in Hawaii is unbelievable as well as predictable. ( )

This had an intriguing start. Laura loses her father and her fiance both and goes to live with her aunt in Hawaii. Her aunt suffers ill health, her uncle is a pure evil villain, and the care of her two girl cousins falls into Laura's hands. Laura eventually realizes (not soon enough in my opinion) that she needs to get out from under her controlling uncle Stephen's rule. (She actually has to have this revelation slapped into her.) Oppurtunity arrises when the heir to the Hawaiian throne, a young child at the time, needs a new governess.

So off Laura goes to work for the Hawaiian royal family and into the middle of court intrigue she steps. While a group of conniving, nasty white men constantly sit around coming up with ways to usurp the Hawaiian king (or queen or whoever is sitting on the throne at any time) and take all the power and riches of Hawaii for themselves, Laura is being courted by two potential beaus, Lucien and David. Lucien is the kind of fellow her uncle Stephen would choose for her, white, well bred, rich, educated. David is half Hawaiian and if uncle Stephen and Lucien have their way, out of the picture completely and not in the running for the lovely Laura's hand.

Very rich in Hawaiian history, but considering it is mostly court intrigue and melodrama, I think it would have be better told from Lili'uokalani's point of view or "following" Lili'uokalani and eliminating Laura completely. I didn't like Laura. She was too weak, too submissive, and at times too slow witted for my taste. ( )

I was born in Honolulu in 1942, and until I was injured I returned at least every year. I am fasinated by the culture and the Spirituality. The Last Aloha, while fiction, is historically correct. The Author Gaellen Quinn became interested when her Grandmother "Talk Story" and Gaellen got her first glimpse of the gap between the corrupt government and the royalty that fought and lived the love of the land and its people against all odds. How in the end Royalty lost. But never in the eyes of the strong loving Hawaiians. To this day royalty of days gone by is reviered and held in grace. True Aloha spirit. ( )