Out of the Attic by V. C. Andrews

 Corrine Foxworth is married to Garland Foxworth. The have a son named, Malcolm.  They live in a beautiful estate and are incredibly wealthy. Garland is incredibly dedicated to his work and is seldom home. Corrine's life is lonely. She only has the housing staff and her son to keep her company. She feels unloved and suffocated. She is only 21 years old. She needs excitement in her life, she hasn't traveled and has no friends. Corrine decides to join a group of women, which eventually leads her to get her portrait done by an artist. This encounter will forever change her life and the life of her son. 

This is an easy read. It sets the roots of the Foxworth/Dollanganger family. It isn't masterpiece writing but it is entertaining enough. Corrine is a flawed often at times an unlikeable character but you get a better understanding of why she made some of the choices she did. 

Beneath the Attic (Dollanganger #8) by V.C. Andrews

It's the 1890s and Corinne Dixon is about to enter into a life that will set the path of destruction for the Foxworth and Dollanganger family. 

Corinne Dixon is enjoying the life of a young girl. She is happy and beautiful. 

She catches the eye of handsome, charming, rich Garland Foxworth. She is enchanted and naively trusts him. She mets with him in secret and becomes pregnant. Wedding details are put into place and a few peculiar things about Garland are revealed. 

I didn't like this book but I also did not dislike it. It was "ok". Corinne is a spoiled and vain girl but I am not surprised by this. I did like learning a bit more about Corinne since we know very little about her up until this book. Garland is just as evil if not more than I imagined. 

If you are addicted to the Dollangangers and are invested in their story this book is worth your time since it's a super easy read. 

All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers

 

Are you a Crime Junkie podcast listener? If so you've been hearing Ashley advertise her book for months. I finally got my hands on a copy and I devoured it. Flowers, have created a novel that flows quickly and has well developed characters but the ending .... is ambiguous.

Margot Davis was only 6 years old when her little friend and neighbor was murdered. She's been forever haunted by the unsolved murder of January Jones. It's been twenty years and Margot is now a journalist for a small newspaper. She returns back home to help care for her Uncle who has early onset alzheimer's. 

A little girl in a nearby town goes missing and the case of Natalie Clark has similarities to the January Jones Case. The Police say there is no connection but Margot isn't so sure. In fact she is convinced it's the same person. She undertakes her own investigation in an effort to find the killer. Margot finds out that the residents of her hometown are full of secrets and the more she learns the most suspicious she becomes of everyone. 

The January Jones case has a lot of similarities to JonBenet Ramsey, one could suggest that the case heavily influenced her book, All Good People. Flowers has said the book has twist and turns and will keep you guessing. She is partially right. It does have twist and turns but I  was able to figure out two of the reveals chapters before they were disclosed. This doesn't mean it isn't a good read because it is and Flower have a knack for writing that shows in this debut novel. 

Clique Bait by Ann Valett

 

I came across Clique Bait quite by accident and I am glad that I did.  It's an entertaining and fun story.

Something happened to Monica, Chloe Whittaker's best friend and Chloe is out for revenge. In order to seek it she needs to squirrel her way into the  popular group, find their weaknesses, secrets and expose them. Humiliation and ultimate payback is what she seeks.

Chloe has to reinvent herself. Toss out her old clothes and buy new more in fashion. Delete social media and find a way to get into the popular crew.

Once she finds herself within the ranks of the popular kids she is faced with a decision to either end her revenge plan or continue with it. Either decision will betray her heart. She has to figure out what path she is going to take in the fork in the road.

Secret Brother (Dollanganger #7 ) by V.C. Andrews

 Why, why, why do I continue to read these books? This book isn't told from a secret brother's point of view but rather from the point of view of a girl named Clara Sue (seriously, another C, name!). 

Clara Sue's parents are dead, she and her brother are being raised by her grandfather. On the day her brother dies another young boy is brought into the hospital and the grandfather takes an interest in him. This young boy becomes part of the family and Clara Sue is resentful, angry and bratty. 

The ghostwriter usually captures VC Andrews voice but in this case it's just a hot mess and disappointing. This isn't Cory's story ... it's Clara Sue's. 

Christopher's Diary: Echoes of Dollanganger (The Diaries Series Book 2) by V.C. Andrews

 This book picks up right where, Christopher's Diary: Secrets of Foxworth (The Diaries Series Book 1) by V.C. Andrews ended. 

Kristen and her boyfriend continue to read Chris's diary and reenact scenes from it.  We continue to learn more about how Chris felt but we don't learn anything groundbreakingly new. It's just a retelling of Flowers  in the Attic from a different point of view that isn't too different, it's not as though its Malcolm or even Corrie telling the story (now that would interesting!)

This is another short read that can be done in a day. So if you have some time to waste or are interested in reading it go for it. 

Christopher's Diary: Secrets of Foxworth (The Diaries Series Book 1) by V.C. Andrews

 Apparently, I read this book back in 2016! I had no idea I had read it until it started to seem slightly familiar. I did a quick search on my blog and it found that I had indeed read it. HERE is my review from back then. My opinion has changed a bit since then. 

I do like it a bit more however I think it's because I am reading the other books in the series days/weeks apart rather than years. I think having a recent reference from the other books to pull from makes the read more interesting. 

This book is about a young women named Kristen who along with her boyfriend reads Christopher Dollangangers diary that has been found in a metal box on a construction site. The diary details the time the Dollanganger children spend in the attic from Chris's point of view not Cathy's view as we get in The Flowers in the Attic. 

The reader gets to understand the character of Chris more, a character I always liked. Don't read this book thinking it is all about  Chris's diary because it's not. It's just snippets of his diary mixed in with the story of our main character Kristen, who is quite likable. 

This book can be read in a day and if you enjoy the series this book may very well be worth your read. 

The Brittanys by Brittany Ackerman

What a fun nostalgic read that will have you reminiscing about your high school days. There are five, Brittany's in this story and each of them are dramatic in their own way.  The go by their last names, they are  kinda popular, young and they are friends and sometimes they are not friends. 

 Through the book you go to "see" the life of a teenage girl, her worries about boys, sex, family, life, their own sexuality,  etc.  High School is a rough time,  finding your own self is even harder and this quick, easy read of a book explores so much of what one goes through in youth. 

Ackerman, really paints a clear picture. I can envision the scho
ol, the girls, their clothing and accessories. It is as thought the late 90s and early 2000s are painted on the pages of the book. 

This book makes for a fun, read that can entrain you and make you thankful your teen years are over!

Missing Clarissa by Ripley Jones

 

                                                    Expected Publication Date: 03/07/2023

Do you love True Crime? Are you addicted to True Crime Podcasts? Do you consider yourself a true crime sleuth. ? If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, this book is for you!

It was 1999, the school year was coming to an end, students were graduating and that meant a party in the woods. What was supposed to be a fun night turned into tragedy. 

Beautiful, talented, Clarissa went into the woods and was never seen again. It's as though she disappeared into thin air. She was never heard from again nor was her body found. 

It's been 20 years since Clarissa went missing and the little rural town of Oreville, Washington hasn't forgotten. A new generation knows the story of the popular cheerleader who went missing. A school assignment leads Blair and Cameron into producing a True Crime Podcast about Clarissa. The slowly uncover secrets the town holds but will it be enough to find justice?

The story is told from different point of views. It's fast paced and a great addition to YA books. 

* I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Garden of Shadows by V.C. Andrews

 Long before the birth of Chris, Cathy, Carrie and Cory Dollanganger there was a young woman who would eventually become Olivia Foxworth. Garden of Shadows introduces us to the woman who is nothing like the woman she would become. 

In the beginning, Oliva was a likable, kind and sympathetic character but years of being married to Malcolm Foxworth changes her. Oliva's life with Malcolm was hard. He was not an easy man to love or live with. He was cure and domineering. The birth of his sons did nothing to ease his cruelty. 

As time passed and the actions of Malcolm become worse, Olivia developed a cold shell and slowly become the evil Grandmother. 

We are introduced to Corrine and Christopher and learn their story. 

This book did not disappoint. There is a lot of background information on characters which gives you a deeper understanding of them. This will change a lot of perceptions regarding characters. This dark tale is one that you will want to read if you've been enamored
with the Dollanganger series.

Seeds of Yesterday by (Dollanganger #4) V.C. Andrews

 Seeds of Yesterday continues to follow the Dollanganger family. They are met with more tragedy and you have to wonder if they are cursed! 

Bart is set to inherit a  large sum of money.  He has had the Foxworth Mansion rebuilt. Cathy and Chris move into the Mansion with plans to leave once Bart comes into his own. Jory, his wife and Cindy return for the reading of the will and to celebrate Barts 25th Birthday. Tragedy strikes foiling plans. 

Unlikeable characters become unbearable. A degree of redemption and forgiveness  occurs. Prepare for sadness and this is possible the saddest installment in the series. 

If There Be Thorns (Dollanganger #3) by V.C. Andrews

 Chris and Cathy are raising, Cathy's children the third installment of the Dollanganger series.  Jory is a teenager who is following the footsteps of his biological father and his mother, Cathy as a dancer for the ballet.  He is handsome, talented and coming of age. Bart is young boy who is handsome but peculiar and clumsy. 

Life is quite pleasant until the empty house in disrepair next door becomes occupied. The new mistress of the house uses her riches to win over Bart however the servant in the home gives Bart a diary to read and fills his mind with stories about sin and the sins of women. 

Bart undergoes a transformation and becomes hateful, violent, destructive and disobedient.  Things get worse when Cindy becomes a part of the family. Chaos and darkness ensues and Cathy will have to fight to win Bart back. 

This is an easy read that delves deeper into the Dollanganger series. Lots of drama.