Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that this book features lots of designer name dropping, some swearing, and a young couple who decides to have sex for the first time (though they don't end up actually doing it). The twins also spend time with men who have gotten out of jail (their father and Lauren's boyfriend's brother), attend the funeral of someone who is shot, and discover that their stepfather runs a gang.
Families can talk about the popularity of series about rich girls. What is it about these books that are appealing? Like most of the books, Hotlanta is filled with lots of designer labels, makeup, and cars. Why do the authors label-drop like this? Does it make you more aware of labels? Does it make you want to buy more designer goods?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Kate Pavao
Readers who like reading series about rich girls with problems will likely enjoy this debut about African-American twins growing up spoiled in Atlanta. At least as much as Gossip Girl or Pretty Little Liars or any other series. This book is contrived down to the last detail -- even Sydney's and Lauren's opposite natures seem scripted -- but it has all the stuff that many of today's teens are gripped by: It's packed with labels. It has romance. It even has intrigue: The girls discover that their father is not a car dealer, but rather a mobster.
The Duke twins don't give you a lot to like. Both seem self-centered, though Sydney is more concerned with good-girl appearances, while Lauren has a bit of a bad-girl rep. But there is probably enough drama here between Lauren's relationship with a boy from the poor side of town, and the girls' recent revelation about the stepfather who has always bought them everything, to keep readers looking forward to the next installment. Hopefully, next time around the girls will gain a bit more depth -- and maybe actually solve a few of their problems.
From The Book
As Lauren stepped out of the long black car, a photographer clicked away. It felt, she thought, like the red carpet treatment; she couldn't help but grin as tourists and fellow Atlantans alike stopped and stared at the power family as it strutted into the building and was escorted into one of the glass elevators, which whisked the Dukes more than 700 feet above the city and opened into a wonderland of red roses and candlelight. As the photographer continued to snap pictures, the entire restaurant broke out into applause, with many of the guests -- a veritable who's who of Atlanta's black elite -- hoisting their elegant glasses of champagne in the air in Keisha and Altimus's honor.
Plot Summary:
Twins enjoy the princess life in Atlanta: attending the "premier, predominantly African-American private institution of learning in the Atlanta area," shopping for designer clothes, driving luxury cars, and generally having it all. But when good girl Sydney starts spending time with her father, who is just out of prison, and sexy Lauren hooks up with a boy from the right side of the tracks, they begin to find cracks in their perfect life -- including that their stepfather may actually be a mobster.
Related Books:
Fun, Clique-Free Teen Girl Reads:
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
The Sweet, Terrible Glorious Year I Truly and Completely Lost It by Lisa Shanahan
Gert Garibaldi's Rants and Raves: One Butt Cheek at a Time by Amber Kizer
| Content | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CS | adults | kids | ||
Sexual ContentLauren tells her boyfriend she's a virgin, and wants him to be his first. He is interrupted on his way to get a condom. |
 |
|||
ViolenceLauren's boyfriend's brother is killed right on his front lawn. The girls discover that their father works for the mob. |
 |
|||
LanguageA range, from "hell" and "damn" to "s--t," and even the f-word. |
|
|||
Message |
|
|||
Social BehaviorBoth twins are pretty self-centered and shallow. |
 |
|||
CommercialismTeen Vogue, Marc Jacobs, Roberto Cavalli, Stella McCartney, Louis Vuitton, MAC, Diet Coke, Sidekick, etc. |
|
|||
Drug/Alcohol/Tobacco |
 |
|||
