At first glance, Vanessa Rothrock is really not all that different from most other girls her age. She has a crush on the cute guy at school. She has a great friend. She works hard to do well in school. At the same time, her mother is the governor of Florida and quickly on her way to becoming the Democratic nominee for President in the upcoming election.

Nessa has also faced some adversity in the past. Her father died in a plane crash years earlier. She still holds her memories of him dear. His absence makes dealing with the fact that her mother is on the campaign trail that much harder, particularly as she works her way through a series of spelling bees. She wants to do her mother proud, but her mother does not seem to be able to attend any of the events.

She also seems to have a secret admirer, who is leaving her notes in her locker. She thinks it is the guys she has a crush on, but that assumption quickly fades. Unfortunately, that is not the only communication she gets via locker mail. Someone decides to use her locker to send threats in the hopes of convincing her mother to drop out of the election.

Besides giving great insight into the early election process, this novel gives readers a good idea what it must be like to be the child of a presidential candidate. While it is great to cheer on a parent, the whole family has to make sacrifices that are not always easy.

As a protagonist, Nessa is a lot like Princes Mia of The Princess Diaries or Georgia Nicolsen from the series of the same name: funny and sassy. I did find her a little whiny at first, but that faded as I got to know her better. She really is a likeable character that made me want to see how things were going to turn out. I am hoping there will be a sequel.