Review: Petals on the Wind by V.C. Andrews

 Title: Petals on the Wind
Author:  V.C. Andrews
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publish Date: November 1990
Source: I received a copy from the publisher; however, this did not affect my review.

What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "For Carrie, Chris and Cathy, the attic was a dark horror that would not leave their minds, even while they built bright, promising new lives. Of course mother had to pretend they didn't exist.

And Grandmother was convinced they had the devil in them.

But that wasn't their fault. Was it? Cathy knew what to do.

She now had the powers she had learned from her beautiful mother. She knew it in the way her brother still yearned for her, in the way her guardian touched her, in the way all men looked at her.

She knew it was time to put what she knew to the test. To show her mother and grandmother that the pain and terror of the attic could not be forgotten... Show them.

Show them—once and for all."

My Two Cents:

"Petals on the Wind" is the second book in V.C. Andrews' salacious Dollanganger series. You will probably want to read the first book in this series or you may not really "get" this book. There is a good reason that this series is still so popular and is being made into new Lifetime movies. While it is by no means the best written book that I've ever read, it is probably ranks as one of the more shocking books that I've ever read.

This story follows the three remaining children from the attic. They are finally out of the attic and Chris, Cathy, and Carrie are trying to make a new life for themselves. But of course, since this is a V.C. Andrews book, that is not that easy. Cathy is  completely damaged in this book and doesn't seem to know how to handle herself. I really thought that she made a mess of things. On one hand, she seems to want to fight the legacy of her and her siblings time in the attic and on the other hand, she seems to be proving her evil grandmother right. I wanted to know more about what she was thinking. She seemed to fall for any man that was in front of her, regardless of whether or not they were appropriate. I was a little confused by that. Cathy didn't seem to even try to break the cycle.

The writing of the book was okay. I thought it was a bit less shaky than "Flowers in the Attic." The pacing was fast, which I enjoyed. Overall, this is a campy read that will keep you turning the pages. 

 

Pocket Books is celebrating the new "Petals on the Wind"  t.v. movie showing on Lifetime soon! You can celebrate too:

FICTION INTO FILM: Pick up Petals on the Wind May 20^th and watch the movie May 26^th!

WATCH: The movie trailer, and tune in to Lifetime on  Monday, May 26^th, 9:00 pm ET to watch the World Premier of Petals on the Wind!

ENTER TO WIN: Go to the Pocket Books Facebook page beginning May 20^th to enter the sweepstakes for a prize pack of Flowers in the Attic and Petals on the Wind, and the Flowers in the Attic DVD.  Visit right before tuning into Petals on the Wind late May for the sweepstakes giveaway (date to be announced)!

Petals on the Wind cast:

Heather Graham              as Corrine

Ellen Burstyn                      as Olivia

Dylan Bruce                        as Bart

Rose McIver                       as Young Cathy (played by Kiernan Shipka in Flowers in the Attic)

Wyatt Nash                        as Christopher (played by Mason Dye in Flowers in the Attic)