You Had me at Hola Book Review

---

You Had Me at Hola is the memoir of Leigh Robshaw who travels from her home in Australia to South America to seek adventure, and find love. Originally only meant to be there for 3 months, the book ends up being a narrative set over a few years mainly in South American countries as Leigh finds her purpose and discovers new experiences and new people along the way.

This memoir was a very quick read for me – I loved how much it immerses the reader in the sites and atmospheres of the places it’s set in. Not only do you feel as if you’re taken to South America, but the details of the people make the whole narrative more immersive and compelling. From the Iguazu Falls to Death Road in Bolivia, Robshaw exposes the reader to so many different and wonderful places.

There was an hint of naivety to the narration which made it endearing; Robshaw starts her journey not knowing what will happen and where it will take her, and there are definitely moments you can feel her wondering if she made the right decisions, but the sense of the unknown in the book is also one of its allures.

My only criticism of the book is that it was a little slow in places, though I think the pacing of the narrative does reflect the pacing of Robshaw’s journey. The characters as well define moments in this book, and I think that her close relationship with her friend Emily and her turbulent relationship with Gabriel are relatable in a lot of ways. The plethora of interesting people definitely make this book what is it.

• 

• 

I’m sure that a lot of people will be able to relate to this book – if they’ve been travelling, but also if they’ve ever found themselves in a time in their lives where they feel a little lost or unsure about what’s going to happen next. I think it’s always useful to read about other people’s experiences because they focus our own ability to move forward and I hope that’s what readers find when they pick up You Had Me at Hola.

Thank you to the author, Leigh Robshaw, for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review