Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson
Paperback, 368 Pages
2009, Point
ISBN: 9780545096324
Series: Book 1 of Scarlett
Synopsis
Her new summer job comes with baggage.
Scarlett Martin has grown up in a most unusual way. Her family owns the Hopewell, a small hotel in the heart of New York City, and Scarlett lives there with her four siblings - Spencer, Lola, and Marlene.
When each of the Martins turns fifteen, they are expected to take over the care of a suite in the once elegant, now shabby Art Deco hotel. For Scarlett's fifteenth birthday, she gets both a room called the Empire Suite, and a permanent guest called Mrs. Amberson.
Scarlett doesn't quite know what to make of this C-list starlet, world traveler, and aspiring autobiographer who wants to take over her life. And when she meets Eric, an astonishingly gorgeous actor who has just moved to the city, her summer takes a second unexpected turn.
Before the summer is over, Scarlett will have to survive a whirlwind of thievery, Broadway glamour, romantic missteps, and theatrical deceptions. But in the city where anything can happen, she just might be able to pull it off.
Review
Suite Scarlett is a novel that gives off the feeling of perky innocence. The main character, Scarlett Martin, is so easy to like that you're immediately swept up in her wholesome personality. Suite Scarlett strays very far from my usual young adult tastes for paranormal or scandalous books and at times I found myself wondering where the big conflict in the plot was. Of course, Suite Scarlett is realistic fiction, and therefore the big conflict was all those little things along the way - her potential romance, her money troubles, her family life, etc. Once I stopped expecting something over-the-top, I found Suite Scarlett to be a surprisingly fun, feel-good book.
Scarlett lives in a hotel owned by her family. Far from rich, the Martin children maintain outside jobs and also take on a suite in which they act as a personal concierge. Fifteen-year-old Scarlett is a sweetheart. She truly cares about her family and often puts her own wants and needs behind theirs. In Suite Scarlett, she experiences working for her first guest, the potential for a first romance, and the realization that the hotel is failing.
Eighteen year old Eric comes into Scarlett's life through her brother Spencer. I loved Eric, all the while being constantly suspicious of him. He was just such a perfect character, and such a perfect person for Scarlett to be attracted to, that I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Scarlett's guest, Mrs. Amberson, is a hugely quirky character. She adds most of the excitement to the book. Her constant flights of fancy can become grating at times, but there is no denying that she is absolutely essential to Scarlett's experiences over the course of the summer.
Suite Scarlett completely surprised me with its good-natured reality. It was a wonderful story which I will definitely be continuing with Scarlett Fever.
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