Tweet This Page

Review of "Grand Hotel" 6/18/19 by Eva Diaz
airs Mondays, 10/9c on ABC

This is a sexy night time soap, produced by Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria, that takes us behind the scenes of a rich family that runs one of the oldest hotels in Miami, the Riveria Grand Hotel. The show is full of mystery that all begins with a hurricane and a women's murder. We see that the hotel's line cook, Sky (Arielle Kebbel) is (probably) killed because she knows a secret about the hotel's owner, Santiago Mendoza (Damian Bichir). At least, that's what they hinted at. Santiago might also have problems with the mob, since he borrowed money from them he was heavily in debt (because the hotel is losing money).

Danny (Lincoln Younes), Sky's brother, arrives at the hotel to find out why his sister disappeared. To do that, he gets a job as a waiter. Danny also has an eye for the boss's daughter, Alicia Mendoza (Denyse Tontz), who just got her MBA and wants to run the hotel. There is also tension between Alicia and her stepmother, Gigi (Roselyn Sanchez) because Alica thinks that Gigi married her father too soon after her mother died, just for his money. Gigi was the best friend of Alicia's late mother, but she doesn't seem like a very good person. Gigi also has two grown daughters, Carolina (Feliz Ramirez) and Yoli (Justina Adorno), who seem spoiled and immature. Santiago also has a son, Javi (General Hospital's Bryan Craig), who has an artificial leg from some mysterious accident. He spends most of his time bedding the female guests.

There are also many interesting hotel staff characters, including Ingrid (Anne Winters), a pregnant maid; Jason (Wendy Raquel Robinson), who's in love with Ingrid; and his mother, Mrs. P (Wendy Raquel Robinson), who's in charge of the staff. Shalim Ortiz plays a mysterious figure who works for the mob. Yes, this is a very big cast. It doesn't get confusing, though, because the characters are very memorable and distinctive. This show is the perfect summer guilty pleasure. In the last few minutes of each episode, we get clues to the various mysteries unfolding between the staff and guests of the hotel. Soap fans will definitely want to tune in to this show that reminds me of "Dynasty" and "Dallas." Besides soap alum Bryan Craig, Roselyn Sanchez is a former star of primetime soap "Devious Maids" and "As the World Turns" (she's also married to Eric Winter, who played Rex on "Days of Our Lives").

I enjoyed this show because it looks like it's going to be a good mystery, full of a lot of twists and turns. I hope we find out by the end of the season who killed Sky and what the big secret she knew is that got her killed. It's been a long time since I've seen a well-written primetime soap opera, and Grand Hotel has all the good soap elements: secrets, murder, romance, and a lot of family drama. I am definitely going to watch this one for the summer. If you like a good mystery, I think you should watch it, too. I give this show 5 out of 5 stars.

MORE INFORMATION:

The opinions in these articles are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The TV MegaSite or its other volunteers.

Proofread and Edited by Brenda

We need more episode guide recap writers, article writers, MS FrontPage and Web Expression users, graphics designers, and more, so please email us if you can help out!  More volunteers always needed!  Thanks!

Back to the Main Reviews Page