16-year-old Scarlett Martin and her family own, live in, and run an old hotel in New York City. Unfortunately, it's a shabby, unpopular, run down hotel that takes so much money to operate that they've had to let go of most of the full-time staff. Scarlett, her brother Spencer, and her sisters, Lola and Marlene, work along with their parents to clean the rooms, man the desk, and provide the most tip top customer service possible. When Mrs. Amberson arrives and books the Empire Suite, the most expensive suite in the hotel, for the entire summer, Scarlett's parents assign her as Mrs. Amberson's personal staff person. Scarlett was upset that all of her friends were off doing exciting things for the summer while she was stuck in the hot and humid city. But now, with Mrs. Amberson's arrival, it looks like things are going to get a lot more interesting!
Scarlett is a fascinating character. Her development over the course of the novel is very subtle and realistic. The characters of her brother and sisters are also very fleshed out - so much so that you are disappointed to leave them at the end of the novel. The repartee between Scarlett and her brother Spencer is witty, quirky and fun, expressing the true bond some sibilings have. Over all, this book is several steps above the usual chicklit fare, and I can't wait to read more of Maureen Johnson's novels.
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