Listened to on audio. Scarlett lives in the hotel owned by her family. Instead of getting a normal summer job, she has to help out at the hotel and is in charge of its only guest, the very exuberant Mrs. Amberson. Balancing her relationship with her brother and sisters, as well as a budding romance, Scarlett's summer turns out to be anything but ordinary. ( )

Scarlett's family owns the Hopewell hotel in New York. This hotel was once the place to be, however over the years it has dwindled down and now it is only Scarlett and her family taking care of it. When they get a guest who's more than over-the-top and she requests the Empire Suite (which is the room Scarlett takes care of) things start to get more interesting. Scarlett ends up as the over-the-top ex-starlet's personal assistant, which isn't always a good thing despite the cash flow. When Scarlett's older brother's theater production is on the verge of being shut down, the ex-starlet, Mrs. Amberson, offers to take over funding. Through wacky revenge themes and ridiculous theater antics, love and loss, Scarlett manages to keep her chin up and comes out even better than before.

I love this book! Maureen Johnson, you are a genius. This was everything you could want realistic fiction to be. Witty and well-written. I had so much fun reading this and I don't know why I did not pick it up sooner. The only problem I had is when Scarlett's brother is getting ready to get going with the play she says "Good Luck." Since her brother has been a theater geek his whole life Scarlett would have to have known that it is bad luck to say good luck to an actor before they go on stage. She should have said "Break a leg." That is all. I really recommend this to readers of humorous realistic fiction. It is the book you are looking for, it's so well written and just awesome! So buy it for you, buy it for your friends and buy it for your neighbors. It's excellent.

First Line:
"The Hopewell has been a family-run institution on the Upper East Side for over seventy-five years."

Favorite Line:
"'Every time you flirt with her,' Scarlett said, 'a puppy dies.'" ( )

Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson was a great book. It was about a fifteen year old girl named Scarlett who lives in New York City. She has two older siblings, Spencer and Lola, and she also has a younger sister named Marlene. Her family owns a hotel which is facing financial trouble. Scarlett, Lola, and Spencer work hard to get more money for their family. Spencer is an actor and has a show that could help him make his career successful. A guest comes to their hotel and she stays there full time. This guest makes Scarlett’s summer more exciting, and could even help the hotel survive. This book was good because the plot was interesting. The story kept changing and there were many parts to the story. Also, it was a fun book to read, so I wanted to keep reading it. ( )

I loved Suite Scarlett from the very beginning. Johnson’s writing is, as I said, hilarious, but also very true to life. She doesn’t over describe things or pad her paragraphs with cliches. She writes the way I aspire to, almost as if you’re just talking. Her characters are almost so real that they jump off the page; my favorite was definitely Spencer, the older brother unemployed actor. He and Scarlett have a connection that I wish I had with my siblings and it makes sense: they formed a bond when their little sister, Marlene, was in the hospital.

Marlene is also an exceptional character: she had cancer when she was younger, so her parents don’t boss her around and she acts like a spoiled brat because she can do whatever she wants. I loved the fact that she was like that. It seemed so real to me.

The love story was cute and I loved that it wasn’t the entire point of the story; there’s obviously more to Scarlett’s life, which is how it is in reality. And Eric seemed very true-to-life, although I thought she should’ve dropped him at the end.

Overall, I loved Suite Scarlett. However, it doesn’t get a 5 star rating because of one thing that just niggled at my brain the entire time: the story didn’t seem… finished. It felt like just an episode in Scarlett’s crazy life, not something that totally changed as a person. Sure, there was character development, but it didn’t seem SO significant. I know that there’s a sequel coming out, so that might be why I feel like her story isn’t over. ( )

Such a great story about a family who lives in and owns a vintage hotel in NYC. On her 15th birthday, Scarlett - the third of four children - is given responsibility for the Empire Suite...and any of it's guests. Her first guest requires very personal service and Scarlett has to juggle her demands amidst an out-of-work actor brother, a beautiful sister whose relationship is on the rocks, and a younger sister who gets her way in everything. I loved the characters in this book. Spencer is hilarious; Lola endearing; and Scarlett is like a breath of fresh-teenage air. She's got insecurities but is a take action type of gal who is creative enough to survive any situation. I especially liked reading about a 'normal' family who loves and watches out for each other. So refreshing!One of my aspects of the book were all the guide book 'quotes' about the hotel, Johnson is such a witty writer! ( )