The Artful Goddaughter: A Gina Gallo Mystery

Gr 8 Up—Mob goddaughter Gina Gallo is doing her best to stay clean and separate herself from the family's "activities." She wants to focus on running her jewelry shop and planning her wedding, but her recently deceased great-uncle Seb has different plans. Seb, a famous art forger, left Gina $2 million in his will. The catch is that Seb stole a famous painting, and in order to inherit the money, Gina must pull a reverse-heist and return it to its rightful place at the City Art Gallery. Gina rounds up her family connections to determine how to get the painting back in the gallery while convincing her family that she doesn't want back into the crime life. This hi-lo book will hold little interest for readers. The plot consists of mostly random events that seem set up so various characters can hold conversations in an attempt to move the plot forward, and the resolution occurs quickly. Characters and language feel forced and stereotypical, as though taken from a B-movie version of The Godfather, and occasional swearing feels gratuitous rather than authentic. A minor subplot involving outsourcing money laundering to the Chinese comes off as racist. The story is lighthearted and comedic, but the mood alone is not enough to carry readers through. Even where hi-lo books are popular, libraries should pass.—Kelsey Johnson-Kaiser, Columbus Public Library, WI