Over Thanksgiving break, I decided to read an old book I found on the back of a bookshelf. Published in 1979, “Flowers in the Attic” by V.C. Andrews was not what I expected.

The book is told from the perspective of Cathy Dollanganger, who is 12 and the second of four children (Chris, who is 14, and twins Cory and Carrie, who are five). They lived a picture-perfect life with both of their parents until their father died in a car accident, leaving the family in destitution. Their mother, Corrine, takes the children to her parents’ home in Virginia. The grandmother is a cold and heartless woman, but after persuasion, they are allowed to stay — under the condition that the children are hidden in the attic. The grandfather mustn’t know about the children, otherwise Corrine won’t inherit the family fortune.  

The children are told that in a week Corrine will win back her father’s affection then he will die and the children will be let out. Days turn to weeks, weeks to months, months to years. At first Corrine would visit daily, but eventually this dwindled down to hardly ever. During this time, Olivia is feeding the children in the morning, while verbally and physically abusing them.

After almost four years, the children become sick. Cory is the worst. After promising that she would take Cory to the hospital, Corrine returns and discovers that Cory has died. After that, it doesn’t take long for the remaining three children to escape Foxworth Hall. Cathy left a message for anyone who entered their prison in the attic saying, “We lived in the attic, Christopher, Cory, Carrie and me. Now there are only three.”

Flowers in the Attic is full of incest, mystery, betrayal and greed. It is the first of a series, followed by Petals on the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday and Garden of Shadows. This was definitely a dark read, and I wouldn’t recommend it to the faint of heart.