MAFIA GIRL

Enjoyable, straightforward high school drama despite the Mafia princess framework.

Gia wants to be a normal middle-class 17-year-old girl, with normal high school drama and normal friends and normal relationship woes. But her father is the capo di tutti capi, “the Boss of all Bosses.” So she’s driven to her extremely ritzy private school every day by Frankie with the Glock, and when she’s pulled over for speeding by the most gorgeous cop ever, her dad’s million-dollar lawyer bails her out. Still, for the most part, she manages “normal”: She works hard to get straight A’s, resents her parent-mandated after-school job and runs for student-council president. Sure, Gia’s family drama involves cops coming after her dad, but everything’s going to be fine, right? When everything isn’t fine, Gia will still survive, as she has fantastic friends who will always be there for her. An unsettling, discordant romance with a police officer—where the age and power differential are never addressed—only weakens Gia’s otherwise strong characterization and development.

Despite all the wealth, Vogue photo shoots and designer clothing, mostly a down-to-earth slice of life; more Kody Keplinger than Gossip Girl