Little Miss Red

by Robin Palmer

Overview

The ideal L.A. fairy tale for fans of Once Upon a Time and L.A. Candy, from the author of Geek Charming.

Sophie Greene gets good grades, does the right thing, and has a boyfriend that her parents— and her younger brother—just love. (Too bad she doesn’t love him.) Sophie dreams of being more like Devon Deveraux, star of her favorite romance novels, but, in reality, Sophie isn’t even daring enough to change her nail polish. All of that changes when Sophie goes to Florida to visit her grandma Roz, and she finds herself seated next to a wolfishly goodlooking guy on the plane. The two hit it off, and before she knows it, Sophie’s living on the edge. But is the drama all it’s cracked up to be?

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Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101651100
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	02/09/2010
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	320
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	12 Years

About the Author

Robin Palmer grew up in Massachusetts and New Jersey, and graduated from Boston University before she hit the road for Hollywood. Starting as an assistant in the television literary department of the William Morris Agency, she quickly moved up the ranks and spent the next decade as a literary agent, producer, and television network executive at Lifetime Television, where she developed over one hundred scripts and oversaw the production of over thirty of the cable network's original movies. In 2001, she remembered that she had originally intended to spend her life either as a writer or a toll booth collector (so she could indulge her penchant for spending her days alone reading), but as there are no toll roads in southern California, she decided to give the writing thing a try. Since then, she's written everything from screenplays to essays to a novel to a preschool guide. Although she's constantly threatening to move, she currently resides in New York City.

Editorial Reviews

Sophie is obsessed with the Devon Devoreaux romance series, imagining herself as the heroine in such novels as Lassoed by Lust and Battered by Betrayal, in which Devon meets millionaire playboys or dates South American dictators. Sophie’s real-life love life pales in comparison, as she’s stuck in a listless relationship with her boyfriend, Michael. But after Michael “push[es] the pause button” on their relationship, Sophie, on a flight to Florida, meets Jack, a boy who seems ripped from the pages of her beloved romances (“Not only was he the hottest guy I had ever seen in person, but as I stood up to let him get to his seat, our arms touched and I immediately knew we were soul mates”). Unfortunately, both of Palmer’s (Geek Charming) romantic leads are rather unlikable, with Sophie portrayed as awkward and naïve and Jack as clueless and cheesy. The humor tends toward the corny, and Sophie’s character can be summed up through her observation: “There was only so much a girl could focus on when a hot guy was holding her hand and scrambling her brain.” Ages 12–up. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

Gr 6–9—When Sophie Greene flies to Florida to spend spring break with her grandmother, she meets Jack, a stand-in for the Big Bad Wolf, on the plane. She devours romance novels about Devon Devoreaux, a jet-setter with a boyfriend in every port whose soul mate, Dante, resembles Jack. Sophie would like to believe that Jack is her soul mate, especially when he calls her "Red" because of the cowgirl hat she's bought on a whim and because he's more rebellious than her last boyfriend, Michael. Sophie takes most of the novel to realize what readers get right away: Jack is nothing but a charming moocher who isn't all that exciting. Unrealistically, he's able to schmooze her grandmother and worm himself into a place to stay, unlimited television, and homemade meals. Michael shows up in Florida and shares an amusing miniature-golf duel with Jack over Sophie, and she decides against both rivals. By story's end, though, she admits there's something to be said for steadfast Michael as long as she can spice up her life on her own. Neither hilariously funny nor weighty enough to be taken seriously, this third title in Palmer's series of fairy-tale variants seems like a parody of itself. Readers don't know whether to root for Sophie or to shake her, and her constant references to the "Devon" books get annoying.—Tina Zubak, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA

School Library Journal