In this debut YA, Hollings adds to the Mean Girls
subgenre by introducing Amelia Warner, a master backstabber and experienced liar, whose academic father can't afford the A-list life she desperately wants. Chapters alternate between the viewpoints of conniving Amelia (actual name: Ann), nouveau riche Courtney Moore (Amelia's wealthy target) and Amelia's brother, Zach, whose main appeal appears to be his looks. The plot basically revolves around Amelia piling lie upon lie in order to further dupe and con sweet-natured Courtney into inviting Amelia to stay at her spacious Manhattan apartment and buying Amelia everything from a Cartier watch to cocktails at the Carlyle Hotel. None of the characters is especially sympathetic—not even Courtney who is frustratingly gullible—and Amelia's lies are haphazard rather than clever. Hollings's prose does the usual name-dropping for every article of clothing mentioned and top-tier restaurant and club visited, giving the book the air of a manual for social climbers like Amelia. It's easy to envision readers Googling everything from Harry's Bar in Rome to Cohiba cigars to polish their own repartee. Ages 14–up. (June)
