The A-List: Hollywood Royalty

by: Zoey Dean

Published by: Little, Brown and Company

Reviewed by Lauren Segelbaum

I am the parent of author Zoe Dean’s target reader. When my daughter picks up the latest Dean novel, I find myself repeating over and over, “I am so glad my daughter is reading, I don’t care what she reads. Zoe Dean’s writing is not Jane Austen, nor is it Harper Lee. It is however the writer who has my 14-year-old anxiously awaiting the next book in the series.

Hollywood Royalty is the first in the new A-List series that introduces the teen reader to a new set of Californian teens. Young fans of the original series will not be disappointed. The story takes place in Los Angeles naturally and revolves around the lives of five different teens.

— First there is Amelie, a Mylie Cyrus type character who is the child star who wants to be an adult.

— Then there is Myla who is the adopted daughter of famous parents, Hollywood’s golden couple Barbar and Lailah.

— Myla, along with her boyfriend Ash, the son of a record producer, are the perfect teen couple. We know there is no such thing.

— Jacob is Amelie’s nerdy tutor who comes back from math camp totally transformed into a “hottie.”

— Last but not least, there is Jo Jo. She finds out Hollywood’s golden couple are her birth parents and enters the A-List world by default.

Together these characters bring lots of drama, romance and deviousness.

After reading a brief interview on Zoe Dean’s Web site, it is hard to tell if she is one of her characters or a successful teen writer with an edge. When asked who her celebrity crush is, she answers, “His initials are J.G. and that would be his crush on me.” Sound familiar, young readers?

Armchair Interviews says: Good to have interesting reads for Young Adults.

Author’s Web site: http://www.PickaPoppy.com