Flowers in the Attic

Flowers in the Attic. V. C. Andrews. Pocket Books. 1979. 389 pages. (Source: purchased from Betterworldbooks.com)

First sentence: It is so appropriate to color hope yellow, like that sun we seldom saw.

Plot:  Such wonderful children. Such a beautiful mother. Such a lovely house. Such endless terror!

It wasn't that she didn't love her children. She did. But there was a fortune at stake--a fortune that would assure their later happiness if she could keep the children a secret from her dying father.

So she and her mother hid her darlings away in an unused attic.

Just for a little while.

But the brutal days swelled into agonizing years. Now Cathy, Chris, and the twins wait in their cramped and helpless world, stirred by adult dreams, adult desires, served a meager sustenance by an angry, superstitious grandmother who knows that the Devil works in dark and devious ways. Sometimes he sends children to do his work--children who--one by one--must be destroyed....

'Way upstairs there are

four secrets hidden.

Blond, beautiful, innocent

struggling to stay alive...

My thoughts:  This was a suspensful read.  It's hard to say that something like this was enjoyable as it was stressful at times.  I found myself hoping and praying that an old man would die soon so that these children could run in the sun and enjoy life.  But it wasn't to be.  These were bright children  ages from 5 to 14.  Their mother bought them everything that money could buy except their freedom.  A home to call their own.

I am looking forward to the next one as I want to see how these children fare in a life.  I can't go into much detail or it will be a huge spoiler!  If you like mystery or drama you will like this one.