This book probably had some layers of meaning wrapped around it, but I was kind of disappointed as I thought it would be more about the dystopia of making coffee and chocolate illegal. Obviously it's a Prohibition setting in the future, but we don't know why. It's your basic gangster book with a love story. Actually, I take that back. It's a love story with a gangster background. It was ok. I know a couple of students who absolutely loved it and couldn't wait to get their hands on the next 2 in the series, so it is hitting a good teen demographic. But it just wasn't my cup of coffee.