review: petals on the wind by v.c. andrews

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With Lifetime following up their excellent rendition of Flowers in the Attic with Petals on the Wind, it was time for me to revisit that book as well. Although no one gets locked in any attics, Petals on the Wind is definitely another twisted book in the Dollanganger series. It seems Cathy has not only inherited her mother’s looks, but also her moral compass. She is out for revenge, but first Cathy has to pursue her ballet career while trying to forget her feelings for her brother by sleeping with a bunch of other men. I remembered much of the plot, but had forgotten some of the finer details like how Cathy was positioned as the seductress of all these men even though they raped her. Reading as an adult, I can’t help but think V.C. Andrews had some major issues with men given the repeated themes of rape and men being attracted to girls. Early on, Chris says in reference to Paul, “’I really don’t like the way he keeps looking at you, Cathy. His eyes follow you about all the time. Here you are, so available, and men his age find girls your age irresistible.” Such sentiments continue with Cathy noting her husband Julian’s affairs with young girls. While shifting from the horrors a mother can inflict to those of men, Andrews also seems to have found an editor for Petals on the Wind. Cathy uses “golly-lolly” just once and pokes fun at herself for doing so. And while the descriptions continue to be far more “tell” than “show,” the prose is not nearly as overwrought as it was in Flowers in the Attic.
4/5
Review copy provided by the publisher, Pocket Books.

In promotion of the new Lifetime movie, Pocket Books has a Facebook contest starting on May 20. The prize is a DVD of Flowers in the Attic plus the two books.