Shadows of Foxworth by V.C. Andrews

Forbidden passions have been the hallmark of the Dollanganger clan since Flowers in the Attic debuted more than forty years ago. In this third book of a new related trilogy, witness the birth of the Dollanganger curse as Corrine Foxworth’s children learn that family is but destiny by another, crueler name.

As a young girl in France, Marlena Hunter’s life was a fairy tale. She had a talented artist for a father, a doting mother, and a brother she couldn’t be closer to. She loved her family; she just didn’t know what her family actually was.

When a car crash kills their parents, Marlena and Yvon lose not only France, but also their identity. Sent to Richmond, Virginia, they arrive at the home of two aunts they’ve never met before, who tell them that their true last name is Dawson, that their father had fled the family years back—and that now the family is calling in the debt.

Trapped in a mansion with as many secrets as rooms, Marlena yearns for escape. But in America, you can either make friends or make profit, and Yvon suddenly seems much more interested in the latter. While he is free to leave the house, Marlena is left to avoid lecherous tutors and the secretary-to-wife track expected of a woman. Caught between mastering the game to escape it and falling prey to its allure, she needs to learn fast—for Malcolm Foxworth has cast his eye in her direction. And no family name can protect her from the twisted roots of the Dollanganger family tree.

Book 11
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Simon & Schuster – Paperback

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆
Shadows of Foxworth is the eleventh installment of the Dollanganger series. Can it be read as a standalone? No, absolutely not. The entire series must be read in order. However, I'm unsure if the reader would benefit from reading the original novels AFTER these new novels, where they predated them in the series.

As always, I must reaffirm that only the original novels in the series were written by V.C. Andrews. My entire lifetime, other than reading Virginia Andrew's previously released original novels, every new novel I've read was written by ghost writer, Andrew Neiderman. Late 80s onward. If you've enjoyed those novels, they have been consistently written by the same author.

V.C. Andrews is an entity. A product brand. Not the author herself. The writer/author of this novel is Andrew Neiderman, as have been at least 40 novels previously.

Now I'm going to admit something that will spark shock in fans. Flowers in the Attic was my least favorite of the novels, and its series as well. With that being said, I've read all of the prequels. But I wish, truly wish, if we're going to expand an original series, ANY of the other series would have been my preference. I connected to the other stories more, but the creepy factor truly does make for a suspenseful read.

Of the three newer novels, this is my least favorite. I adore the dark gothic feel of these novels, the era lending a strong mysterious vibe. The secrets and lies, the skeletons in the closet. How abuse shapes the characters.

Going back generations, readers learn the journey in which it made it acceptable to lock four children in an attic until their mother received her inheritance, when her father was still alive. These prequels explore how the characters were susceptible to connecting to members of their own bloodlines. The novels also showcase how history repeats itself, the dark secrets almost written into their DNA.

Am I avoiding the giving a rundown of the plot? Yes. This is quite possibly the last novel in the series. I don't wish to ruin anything for a reader by giving a rundown, when everything is entwined within the novels before it.

Shadows of Foxworth felt slower in pacing than the others, nothing truly capturing my interests. The gothic feel wasn't as dark as the previous installments. The excitement level was low, not hooking me. There weren't any major twists and turns or mysteries.

I highly recommend to fans who have been following this journey. Reluctantly recommend to fans of Virginia Andrews, those who haven't read any novels past the mid-1980s, as none of those are her original works.

To this day, Dawn is my favorite of the "new" novels. My Sweet Audrina is my favorite of the original novels.

One of the most popular authors of all time, V.C. Andrews has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of the spellbinding classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began the renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than sixty novels in nearly twenty bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies and have been translated into twenty-two foreign languages.

Sadly, V.C. passed away in 1986. She left several unfinished manuscripts and outlines that were completed by Andrew Neiderman.

Connect with V.C.

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Shadows of Foxworth (Dollanganger #11) by V.C. Andrews to read and review.

Out of the Attic by V.C. Andrews

The twisted, beloved Dollanganger legend began two generations before Corrine Foxworth locked away her children in Flowers in the Attic. The second book in a new prequel story arc, Out of the Attic explores the Dollanganger family saga by traveling back decades to when the clan’s wicked destiny first took root.

Married to the handsome, wealthy Garland Foxworth following a wildfire romance, and an unexpected pregnancy, young Corrine Dixon finds her life very different from how she imagined it. Often alone in the mansion of Foxworth Hall, she can practically feel the ancestors’ judgment of her as insufficient—as not a Foxworth. Stern portraits glare at her from the walls, and the servants treat her strangely. Nothing in the vast place is truly hers.

Even her son, Malcolm Foxworth, born in the luxe Swan Room and instantly whisked away to a wet nurse, feels alien to her. With a husband alternately absent and possessively close, Corrine doesn’t yet realize that she’s barely scratched the surface of what lies beneath Foxworth Hall’s dark facade and the family that guards its legacies.

With the fortieth anniversary celebration of Flowers in the Attic, and ten new Lifetime movies in the past five years, there has never been a better time to experience the forbidden world of V.C. Andrews.

Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Simon & Schuster – Paperback

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆
3.5 Stars

Spoiler-Free Review

Out of the Attic is the tenth installment in the Dollanganger series, aka Flowers in the Attic. While the latest installment in the long-standing series, Out of the Attic is the second in a series of prequels, events taking place long before those in the original debut with Flowers in the Attic.

Q/A to help V.C. Andrews' readers:

Can a reader pick up this novel up as a standalone without confusion? No.

Does the reader have to read all nine previous books before diving into Out of the Attic? No.

Suggestion/recommendation for those who don't want to read such a long-standing series, or wish to read the prequels before diving into the 'current' storyline, start with Beneath the Attic.

Did V.C. Andrews herself write this novel? No. Andrew Neiderman is the writer who authored the novel, as well as most novels published under the V.C. Andrews' brand over the past 30+ years. If you enjoyed novels written within that time frame, then it was Neiderman's voice you enjoyed.

As a fan of the historical genre, I don't qualify myself as an expert. However, I should stress that if historical accuracy in word-usage/household items/setting is a major pet peeve of yours, steer clear.

The original Corrine is the narrator of the novel, piecing events in history together to complete the puzzle that is the Dollanganger series. Showcasing her life at the hands of her husband, Garland, while featuring Malcolm's childhood. As a woman in the late 1800s, Corrine had little option on how to live her life, which led to dark consequences.

In classic dark horror gothic, to the backdrop of the oppressive Foxworth Hall, expect taboo subject matter, episodes of violence, sexual assault, and being held hostage by choices you've made because you have little choice in the matter.

My biggest complaint is simply how Corrine's voice shifted throughout the novel, not truly authentically hers. As a sheltered young woman in an era where her worldview would have been narrow, sometimes her voice was that of a twenty-year-old, but other times it was that of someone closer to fifty or sixty.

While I believe Out of the Attic to be a worthy addition to the Dollanganger series, that doesn't necessarily mean I was totally engrossed. A mix of reader's block, the historical accuracy errors, and the narrative age shifting, I did struggle to finish the novel.

One of the most popular authors of all time, V.C. Andrews has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of the spellbinding classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began the renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than sixty novels in nearly twenty bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies and have been translated into twenty-two foreign languages.

Sadly, V.C. passed away in 1986. She left several unfinished manuscripts and outlines that were completed by Andrew Neiderman.

Connect with V.C.

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Out of the Attic (Dollanganger) by V.C. Andrews to read and review.

Beneath the Attic by V.C. Andrews

Forbidden passions have shaped and haunted the Dollanganger family since their first novel—Flowers in the Attic—debuted forty years ago. Now discover how twisted the family roots truly are, and witness the clan’s origins as a result of one wild and complicated relationship. In this evocative and thrilling tale from New York Times bestselling author V.C. Andrews, see Corrine Dixon as a young girl and discover the fascinating family history of the Dollanganger clan.

Two generations before Corinne Foxworth locked her children in an attic, her grandmother, a gorgeous young girl named Corrine Dixon, is swept away by the charms of rich, sophisticated, and handsome Garland Foxworth. After discovering that she’s pregnant, Garland does what appears to be the honorable thing and marries her in a huge ceremony on the luxurious Foxworth Hall grounds. Both families fervently overlook the pregnancy, happy for a suitable resolution.

Now the mistress of a labyrinthine estate, Corrine discovers that nothing is what is seems. Garland is not the man once captivated by her charms, and she’s increasingly troubled by his infatuation with memories of his departed mother.

Can Corrine survive this strange new life? Or is her fate already sealed?

Explore the origins of the legendary Dollanganger family in this page-turning, gripping gothic thriller.

Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Simon & Schuster – Paperback

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
To be honest, those in my age group and older, we're all reading these novels from a nostalgic standpoint, where all will be biased, either upset because the books aren't the same/can't be the same, or those like me, who are just happy that the legacy lives on.

While there is no doubt controversy over how these novels are listed as written by VC Andrews yet written by a ghost writer, Andrew Neiderman, I tend to see VC Andrews more as an entity than the writer herself. Many of today's bestsellers are written by ghost writers for well-known authors, with not many readers in the know of this practice. There is no bait and switch in the case of these novels, as it is common knowledge there has been the same ghost writer since I began reading as an adolescent, as our beloved VC Andrews is no longer with us.

With all that being said, I decided to rate this novel by whether or not the Gothic, dark and twisted vibe felt of similar vein of Ms. Andrews. Obviously, no two writers’ voices can ever be the same, but I do feel Andrew Neiderman is doing an admirable job with the legacy passed on. Ms. Andrews' shoes were impossible to fill, so I appreciate novels of a similar vibe, instead of allowing the legacy to stop with her passing.

The Flowers in the Attic series was the first adult series I read when I was only 10 years old. It wasn't my favorite, as that will forever belong to My Sweet Audrina, with Heaven as a runner-up. Dawn is definitely holding strong in the #3 spot.

In Flowers in the Attic, we saw Corrine's actions through her daughter, Cathy. Corrine was most certainly the antagonist of the Flowers in the Attic series – flighty, careless, and cruel. Materialistic. Self-serving. I'd always wondered what made a woman become the mother who essentially locked her children in an attic and pretended they ceased to exist, all to gain access to her inheritance. But was Corrine the first to go to such lengths?

Beneath the Attic features the original Corrine – Corrine's grandmother and namesake, the children's great-grandmother. A torturous look at how a confident, sixteen-year-old is reduced and broken down due to the circumstances of her life. Showcasing how the darkness at Foxworth hall didn't begin with the children in the attic.

Foxworth Hall came to life in its Gothic, sinister splendor, closets filled with skeletons and twisted secrets hidden in every corner. While the writing may not be the same voice as originally written by VC Andrews herself, the vibe felt the same.

Reading Beneath the Attic would give a new perspective to rereading the Flowers in the Attic series. While I try to not give spoilers away, by avoiding the plot itself, I will say there were a few passages that were difficult to read, on the darker side. Added in with the historical time period in the late 1800s, women's rights weren't even on the horizon, which made it difficult to swallow some of the events that occurred, while most likely an accurate depiction.

With an easy to breeze through plot, the emotions weren't as deep as I wished they would have been, especially with the darker content, needing more emotional exploration for character development, but it did lend to a faster pace.

As I said, I'm in the biased camp, because I was thrilled simply to revisit a series from my childhood, seeking that sense of nostalgia, where I would have been happy with anything, no matter what I received. In this case, I will admit that I was pleased with the insight into Corrine's character, adding another layer to events that happened during the next generations.

One of the most popular authors of all time, V.C. Andrews has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of the spellbinding classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began the renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than sixty novels in nearly twenty bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies and have been translated into twenty-two foreign languages.

Sadly, V.C. passed away in 1986. She left several unfinished manuscripts and outlines that were completed by Andrew Neiderman.

Connect with V.C.

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Beneath the Attic (Dollanganger) by V.C. Andrews to read and review.

Spindrift by V.C. Andrews

Book Four of the Girls of Spindrift. From the New York Times bestselling author of the Flowers in the Attic and My Sweet Audrina series (now Lifetime movies) continues a haunting new series featuring highly intelligent teenage girls who struggle to survive a specialized high school and find their place in a world that doesn’t understand them.

Such is the burden of being brilliant.

The ivied walls of Spindrift corral the brightest young minds in the country. Through these ancient halls walk geniuses too intelligent to truly fit in amongst their peers back home. For many, these stone walls are an island of sanity in a distrusting world.

Among these students stride a clique of three beautiful girls known as the Supremes—Corliss, Donna, and Mayfair. They rule the school with a well-manicured fist. For Donna and Corliss, this is the only place they’ve felt at home. But Mayfair… Mayfair is different.

One day, Mayfair disappears, after having met a mysterious older man in town only the day before. The three girls snuck into town together, so Donna and Corliss feel responsible. They know that they have to help find her.

But more strongly than their feeling of guilt, one question drives them. They wonder, how could one of the Spindrift geniuses, defined by the logical prowess of their brain, make a decision based purely on the whims of the heart?

The four Girls of Spindrift novellas together form a prequel for Bittersweet Dreams—available now!

Book 4
Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
Spindrift, the fourth installment of the Girls of Spindrift series, as well as the prequel to Bittersweet Dreams (which I have not read yet). The novella cannot be read as a standalone.

In this installment, the novella is shared by our previous narrators: Corliss, Donna, and Mayfair, featuring the aftermath of the events that took place during Mayfair.

Spindrift is a school for those beyond what we would see as geniuses. While they are smarter than most people on the planet, the girls are still subject to the human condition – mistakes, hormones, puberty, emotion, and human nature. The girls have a difficulty rationalizing something that isn't rational – emotions and emotional needs, no matter how highly intuitive they may be.

Mayfair is AWOL, with Corliss and Donna figuring out where she may be, then taking the responsibility for their irresponsible actions.

The novella had a finite feeling – as if it was to be left open-ended.

Just an observation: the prologue and the first chapter are only seconds apart in a linear timeline, so I was unsure why there was a prologue at all. This had me thinking there was a time jump, when it took place the same night and the day after the events taking place in Mayfair, the earlier portions of the novella parallel in time with the ending of Mayfair. While the epilogue is an indeterminate time in the future, there being a prologue made zero sense and gave me confusion on determining the timeline.

Recommended to fans of the author – yes, the earliest novels were written by Virginia Andrews, but her name has become a brand, not a singular identity. While I don't have the info on whether or not it has always been the same author(s) since, I will state the continuity of the writing across this series most certainly feels as if written by a singular author who respects the brand and the voice.

Young Adult age-rating: 12+

Also Available in the Girls of Spindrift Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Corliss post.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Donna post.

Book 3
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Mayfair post.

One of the most popular authors of all time, V.C. Andrews has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of the spellbinding classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began the renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than sixty novels in nearly twenty bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies and have been translated into twenty-two foreign languages.

Sadly, V.C. passed away in 1986. She left several unfinished manuscripts and outlines that were completed by Andrew Neiderman.

Connect with V.C.

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Spindrift (Girls of Spindrift #4) by V.C. Andrews to read and review.

Mayfair by V.C. Andrews

Book Three of the Girls of Spindrift. From the New York Times bestselling author of the Flowers in the Attic and My Sweet Audrina series (now Lifetime movies) continues a haunting new series featuring highly intelligent teenage girls who struggle to survive a specialized high school and find their place in a world that doesn’t understand them.

Such is the burden of being brilliant.

Mayfair arrives at Spindrift School, and quickly begins to feel its walls are a prison, its teachers her wardens. Having become best friends with Corliss and Donna, the three of them become the de facto It Girls of Spindrift; the other students call them the Supremes—and not for their singing talents.

Jogging the grounds of Spindrift one day, the girls notices a hole in the fence leading to the nearby town that the students are never permitted to visit. Gathering up their nerve for an off-campus excursion, they venture to a local bar, and into the presence of a man Mayfair becomes enchanted by. Thrilling and new, this affair of the heart is the opposite of the rigorous study Spindrift demands of its pupils. And so for this ultra-smart girl, the question becomes: which is smarter, which brings more self-satisfaction, the path of the brain, or the wilds of the heart?

The four Girls of Spindrift novellas together form a prequel for Bittersweet Dreams—available now!

Book 3
Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆
Mayfair is the third installment in the Girls of Spindrift series, as well as the sequel to the full-length novel Bittersweet Dreams. I recommend against reading as a standalone. Corliss, Donna, then Mayfair.

I rated the first two much higher, and I do believe that is in part due to the fact that Corliss and Donna began before the girls arrived at Spindrift, allowing the reader to forge an emotional connection with the characters, as well as weaving an air of mystery to Spindrift. Mayfair begins while at Spindrift, with a major event 'told' not shown, and this created an emotional disconnect between me and the narrator.

The residents of Spindrift take being geniuses to a whole new level, beyond the range of what an average, everyday person could even contemplate. This almost detached emotional state is difficult to connect to for the reader, at least it was for me.

I enjoyed watching the struggle unfold for the girls as they tried to assimilate back into the population – however, I felt it rather vapid, as if there is no in between. You're either beyond genius or only enjoy shopping and the mall, with no in between.

Overall, I just felt for someone so intelligent, every thought and action was emotionally and mentally stunted at the age of 10 or 12, which made for a difficult read for me.

While this was a quick read, and did fit into the series as a whole, I never connected, didn't truly feel entertained, and never connected to the story or the narrator. With such an original premise surrounding Spindrift, I'm unsure why Mayfair and what she told within her story was a focal point in the first place. With a beginning told (not shown), a dry middle, and it ended before I felt it began, what was or was to come would have been a more interesting focal point to read about instead of what was on the pages.

Recommended to fans of VC Andrews and this series.


Sarah – ☆☆☆
Finally! The girls get to Spindrift! Mayfair’s book starts once all three girls have settled in to Spindrift and formed a friendship of sorts. In a school full of socially awkward geniuses, the three beautiful young women are called the Supremes.

After wading through the first two novellas, I think I was hoping for something more once the girls got to Spindrift. And while we do get a sense of the physicality of the secure school facility, the secrets behind Spindrift are still merely hinted at.

Mayfair’s book somehow manages to spiral into something that almost resembles a romance. She might be a genius, but Mayfair’s decisions seem fairly stupid and her reactions are those of a defiant and somewhat spoiled rich kid. Mayfair isn’t a terribly likeable character. She is as smug as Corliss and Donna, but she also comes across as vain and shallow.

I really haven’t enjoyed the style of the writing in these three prequels. I don’t need my characters to be likeable – I quite enjoy a good antihero or an unreliable narrator – but I really couldn’t engage with any of the three girls and I found the painfully slow build of the story arc incredibly frustrating.

Also Available in the Girls of Spindrift Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Corliss post.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Donna post.

One of the most popular authors of all time, V.C. Andrews has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of the spellbinding classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began the renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than sixty novels in nearly twenty bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies and have been translated into twenty-two foreign languages.

Sadly, V.C. passed away in 1986. She left several unfinished manuscripts and outlines that were completed by Andrew Neiderman.

Connect with V.C.

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Mayfair (Girls of Spindrift #3) by V.C. Andrews to read and review.

Donna by V.C. Andrews

Book Two of the Girls of Spindrift. From the New York Times bestselling author of the Flowers in the Attic and My Sweet Audrina series, now Lifetime movies, continues a haunting new series featuring highly intelligent teenage girls who struggle to survive a specialized high school and find their place in a world that doesn’t understand them.

Such is the burden of being brilliant.

Being gifted is not something Donna ever wanted. It’s difficult enough to have a Latino father and Irish mother, and her genius only separates her even more from the other girls. They don’t say it, but they blame her for everything that goes wrong, just because she’s different.

And on the precise day she tries her hardest to fit in, everything turns out a disaster. A fight breaks out, and somehow Donna ends up in the middle. It’s not her fault, but it’s her word against theirs, and this time, the other girls aren’t going to stay quiet. The only solution might be to escape to the mysterious school her counselor is telling her about: Spindrift.

The four Girls of Spindrift novellas together form a prequel for Bittersweet Dreams—available now!

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆☆
5 Gimme More stars

Reading Donna on the heels of Corliss added to the overall experience. Donna's introduction flowed more smoothly with the added information from the first serial in the prequels.

Donna is other. That's the only way to describe it. Her mind works so differently than what society calls the norm, that there is no gauge of understanding. Legally obligated to go to school, Donna does independent study all day in a private room in the library, in what used to be the in-school suspension room (from what I gathered). She is more removed from her peers than Corliss was in this regard, as she goes all day without interacting with anyone.

Added to her otherness is the fact that she is mixed heritage – a Latina with an Irish mother. Not only is she fighting the fact that she doesn't have the foundation most teenagers do with their peer group – friends and classmates – she's not enough of either heritage to fit in, and is bullied because of it. Donna's classmates think she feels above them, but she doesn't. Her intelligence is a cross she bears – a curse.

Donna has a friend/savior/guy who wants to date her. He's sweet and genuine, and I felt the emotions Donna portrayed realistic and not at all forced in so few pages. But, for Donna, there is a war waging between her mind and her heart. With an intellect so powerful, emotions confuse the teenage girl. Emotions aren't rational. Love can't be measured. In this prequel, that was a powerful message.

Life changes quickly in the blink of an eye, and this is no different for Donna. I was pleased that the reader was able to visit Spindrift for a few pages, as well as see Corliss there.

At the end, the overall emotion I am feeling is gimme more. But the other two serials aren't available, and it's going to take all of my self-restraint not to purchase Bittersweet Dreams, which is the full-length novel these four prequels are based upon. I will be patient. I will wait. I will read the prequels first for optimum reading fulfillment. Maybe.

Young Adult Age-Range: 12+ Kissing and violence.

Also Available in the Girls of Spindrift Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Corliss post.

One of the most popular authors of all time, V.C. Andrews has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of the spellbinding classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began the renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than sixty novels in nearly twenty bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies and have been translated into twenty-two foreign languages.

Sadly, V.C. passed away in 1986. She left several unfinished manuscripts and outlines that were completed by Andrew Neiderman.

Connect with V.C.

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Additional Details & Rules

The winner will be contacted by the Reply feature via their comment on the blog. So make sure that you click the Notify Me box BEFORE you publish your comment. This will insure that you are sent an email when a reply is left on your comment.

The winner MUST contact Wicked Reads by August 22nd.

Because the winner's name must be submitted to the publisher by August 25th, failure by the winner to submit their requested info by August 22nd will result in an alternate winner being chosen on August 23rd.

This giveaway is sponsored by the publisher, so once the winner's info is submitted, Wicked Reads is no longer responsible for the giveaway.

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Donna (Girls of Spindrift #2) by V.C. Andrews to read and review.

Corliss by V.C. Andrews

Book One of the Girls of Spindrift. From the New York Times bestselling author of the Flowers in the Attic and My Sweet Audrina series, now Lifetime movies, here begins a haunting new series featuring highly intelligent teenage girls who struggle to survive a specialized high school and find their place in a world that doesn’t understand them.

Such is the burden of being brilliant.

Corliss is not like the other girls at her Los Angeles high school. Incredibly intelligent, shy, and a loner, she has difficultly in fitting in. What’s worse, a clique of girls is out to get her because she’s not down with their games.

On the night of a school party, her refusal to take drugs with the girls leads them to take matters into their own hands—spiking her drink. Quickly, Corliss’s entire life is turned upside down and no one—not even the handsome valedictorian who had agreed to go out with her—looks at her the same way. Just when she’s wondering if she’ll be able to return to her high school, someone mentions a new place: Spindrift. Could that be her way out?

Note: The four Girls of Spindrift e-novellas together form a prequel for Bittersweet Dreams—available now!

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
4.5 Intrigued stars.

Instead of a short-story, I'd call this a serial.

To be honest, as an old-school V.C. Andrews fan, I wasn't sure what to expect, as I stopped reading the ghost-written books about a decade or so ago. I began reading V.C. Andrews in the late 80s, early 90s when I was about 10 years old. When the opportunity arose to read this series, as well as after checking out the blurb, I honestly went into reading thinking I would be disappointed. I know that sounds odd, but I think that actually was a help, not a detriment, as I thoroughly enjoyed Corliss.

Corliss was a very short introduction to Corliss, our narrator. Four character introductions, showing events leading up to their admittance into Spindrift, tying into the full-length novel, Bittersweet Dreams.

Corliss is a genius, a teenage Temperance Brennan (Bones). She's highly intelligent, cerebral to the point she has a difficult time interacting with her peers, making friends, or dealing with her family. Her mind works on a different wavelength than normal folks. Her narration made it difficult to connect at first, but after I realized her characterization, it made it much easier.

Corliss doesn't have any girl friends – she's too smart, risk-assessment, and she is also beautiful. A self-admitted Beyoncé. Since she and her family are poor, she's at a public school that is barely teaching its students as it is, let alone the brightest of the bright. Corliss isn't 'smart,, like how we mean when we say genius – it has another meaning entirely.

She's struggling, because in order to get a college acceptance, where they want well-rounded academics, she has to take care of her younger siblings instead of engaging in extracurricular activities, which also puts a divide between her and her peers.

After something horrific (the event gave me gut-twisting feels), Corliss is set adrift farther than before, so when the opportunity arises for a different life, she takes it with both hands, even with the guilt of leaving a family who doesn't understand her behind.

Corliss' introduction left me wanting more, eager to read Donna to see how the next narrator ends up at Spindrift, and is making me feel anticipatory for when the girls finally make it to the school. No doubt, in true V.C. Andrews fashion, nothing good will come from where they will end up.

I cannot wait to read more. I'm seriously surprised.

Recommended to fans of V.C. Andrews, readers who enjoy young-adult-aged characters, and those who love twisty, gut-twisting thrills.

Gorgeous cover.

Young Adult age-range: 14+ due to drug-use, bullying, and sexual situations.

One of the most popular authors of all time, V.C. Andrews has been a bestselling phenomenon since the publication of the spellbinding classic Flowers in the Attic. That blockbuster novel began the renowned Dollanganger family saga, which includes Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, and Garden of Shadows. Since then, readers have been captivated by more than sixty novels in nearly twenty bestselling series. V.C. Andrews’s novels have sold more than 106 million copies and have been translated into twenty-two foreign languages.

Sadly, V.C. passed away in 1986. She left several unfinished manuscripts and outlines that were completed by Andrew Neiderman.

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Corliss (Girls of Spindrift #1) by V.C. Andrews to read and review.