**This blog contains adult language.**
Warning: Spoilers Ahead!!! This is a recap blog which means I read the book and tell you everything that happens so you don't have to read it yourself. Do NOT continue to read unless you want to know what cold-hearted-bitch move the twins made this book.
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From the Back of the Book: Torn apart by love... The Wakefield twins' older brother, Steven, hasn't dated anyone since his girlfriend died of leukemia. He can't even look at another girl without thinking of his beloved Tricia. But Steven is drawn to Cara Walker. Sweet Valley's biggest flirt and gossip has changed. Her parents have divorced and her father and brother have moved away. Cara understands the pain of losing someone. When Tricia's sister Betsy sees Steven and Cara dancing together at a party, she accuses Steven of forgetting about Tricia. Steven is torn by Betsy's bitter accusation. He can't deny his attraction to Cara. But how can he ever love another girl after Tricia?
Meet the Cast
*Elizabeth Wakefield – identical twin of Jessica and massive fucking martyr.
*Jessica Wakefield – identical twin of Elizabeth with narcissistic and histrionic tendencies
*EvilNed Wakefield – neglectful patriarch of the clan and successful lawyer
*VileAlice Wakefield – neglectful matriarch of the clan and an interior designer
*Steven Wakefield – older brother, university student and general asshole
*Enid Rollins – Liz's best friend and generic good-girl type
*Todd Wilkins – Liz's douchebag former boyfriend currently exiled to Vermont
*Lila Fowler – Jessica's self-absorbed best friend and representative of SV new money
*Bruce Patman – school dick and representative of SV old money
*Winston Egbert – stereotypical school nerd
There are more but these are the main characters that plague us book after book.
This book was published in 1985 and this is my first time reading it. At first I thought the cover was pretty proportional for once but then I took a closer look and realized that Cara's neck is freakishly long. The more I look at it, the stranger it gets. I don't know who does the covers for these books but they need to take an anatomy class or two.
In the last book, Todd moved to Vermont and Liz pined away in Sweet Valley. At first they resolved to stay together but eventually decided that wasn't very realistic and they were going to have to move on. I don't think they're technically broken up but they've agreed to live their lives and see what happens. Otherwise, not much happened. Cara's parents split up and she reconnected with Steven. They danced together at a party and Betsy freaked out.
Missing, Presumed Dead: Robin and George are still underground being kept company by Bill and DeeDee. As I predicted, Patty, who literally only existed for one book, has not been mentioned again.
Released From the Wakefield Dungeon: No one. The Wakefield's reign of terror continues unchallenged.
I'm reading the Kindle version of this book because I don't own a physical copy and it actually credits the ghostie of the book. This one is written by Kate William. When I looked her up, I discovered that she wrote a bunch of the Sweet Valley books, including some of the ones we've already recapped. I guess we're in familiar hands even if we didn't know her name until now.
{{{Note from future me: the head-hopping is wildly inconsistent in this book. Normally we hop into someone's head and stay there for a chapter or at least a section before veering off into another host. In this book, we hop wildly between everyone in the scene. It's fucking annoying and impossible for me to keep up with. I'm going to note when we change from one set of people to another but just know that we're bouncing around like a ping pong ball on speed during each section.}}}
We begin with Steven having an existential crisis over having a good time with Cara. He feels like he's dishonoring Tricia's memory by seeing another girl so soon. I mean, I think it's been months but it's hard to tell with this fucked up timeline. He tells us he “mourned for weeks” before finally coming out of his depression. Wow. Actual weeks. He was dedicated.
He recounts the incident at Lila's party for us since we mostly missed it. He says that he was having a nice time with the newly mature Cara when Betsy came up and confronted him. She accused him of forgetting about her sister and he ran out of the party and went straight home to mope in his bedroom. He feels awful and vows never to disrespect Tricia's memory again.
He should feel awful about ghosting poor Cara but whatevs.
Now we're with Liz. She's thrilled because Todd's in town for the day and she gets to see him. She knows she'll be sad again when he leaves but hopes they can have a nice day together. EvilNed asks where Steven is and VileAlice says he refused to come down for breakfast. Jess fills them in on what happened at the party and says she'll go up and convince Steven to come downstairs because “no man can resist” her.
Ewwwww. No, miss ma'am. That's your brother.
Character makes a vaguely incestuous remark? Check.
Jess comes back downstairs a few minutes later and announces that Steven will be right down. Almost immediately the doorbell rings and she goes to answer it. It's Betsy and she says Steven asked her to come over. He comes downstairs and the entire family is dismayed by how awful he looks. It's clear he hasn't slept and they can't get him to eat.
Steven and Betsy leave the house together without telling anyone where they're going. VileAlice asks Jess to clean up the kitchen and Jess says she will but her mother shouldn't count on her taking it up as a career. VileAlice responds with “Honey, I never count on you for anything.”
😮😮😮😮😮
OUCH.
I cannot believe she said that.
We're told she's joking but that's not something you joke about. Poor Jess. She's never going to forget her mother saying that to her.
#justiceforJess
While they're cleaning up the kitchen, Jess introduces a B-plot. The girls are going to be participating in a charity volleyball match soon and Jess thinks they should start practicing their serves. Liz says she's can't because she's going to be spending the day with Todd and then has a panic spiral because there's going to be a dance after the match and this will be her first school event since Todd moved away. She wonders if she should try to get a date or if she should go alone.
Steven and Betsy are walking around the neighborhood. They come to a small park and sit on a bench to talk. Betsy admits that she probably overreacted the night before but Steven says she didn't. He apologizes for upsetting her and says that Cara would never be able to take Tricia's place. Betsy reminds him that Tricia will only live on if they remember her so the two sit there and trade stories about her.
We're with Jess now. She overhears VileAlice talking in the hall to Winston's mom about a relative who is a film director. He's going to be coming to Sweet Valley for a visit but he doesn't want anyone to know who he is. Jess gets super excited and immediately starts planning ways that she might be able to meet him.
We join Liz who is at the mall shopping for dresses for the B-plot with Enid. She's not thrilled with any of the options but finds one that she likes well enough. She and Enid go to the food court to get some root beers and Liz is stunned when she sees a guy who looks exactly like Todd coming out of a shoe store. She and Enid search the entire mall but can't find him again. Enid thinks Liz is imagining things because she's sad Todd went back to Vermont but Liz is sure she he exists.
We land in Steven's head on Monday morning. He's getting around to leave the Wakefield Compound so he can go back to school for the week. Before he leaves he calls Betsy to see if they can get together the next weekend again. He feels a need to be around her as much as possible because then his memory of Tricia will stay forefront in his head. Jess admonishes him for hurting Cara's feelings but he shakes it off saying they weren't dating or anything and Cara shouldn't have had any expectations of him.
Steven's an asshole.
On the way to school, the twins talk about the B-plot a little. Liz wants to know who Jess is going to the dance with but Jess swerves the question. We know she's planning to get Winston to ask her but she doesn't want Liz to know that yet. Winston has always been interested in Jess and she figures she'll have a better chance of meeting his famous uncle if she exploits that.
Jess sees an opportunity to put her plan for the C-plot into action when a class project is announced in English class. She makes sure to get paired up with Winston and then suggests they work at his house. He says that they're having guests soon and everything is in an uproar so he suggests the Wakefield Compound instead. I'm surprised he's in a hurry to go back to that place after he spent half a dozen books or so in the dungeon. Maybe he's going to try a recovery operation to get George and Robin out. Jess is disappointed that she won't be able to get into his home to meet his guests but figures she still might have a chance if she can get him to ask her to the dance.
Liz gets assigned to do a story about the B-plot which is honestly weird. She's not the sports reporter. The editor asks her to go pick up a team roster in the coach's office and attach it to the article so Liz heads off that way. To her surprise, she sees Todd coming out of the office and calls out to him. He doesn't respond and she quickly loses him in a sea of students who are trying to get to their next class on time. She races to the glass doors at the end of the hallway just in time to see him getting into a blue convertible. This time she gets a good look at him and realizes that it's not Todd at all – just someone who looks like him.
I guess this Todd clone is going to be our D-plot. According to my Kindle, we're 25% through this book and we've barely touched on Steven at all despite the fact he's supposed to be the A-plot. Any time we get this many subplots going, everything suffers.
Todd calls Liz later that night to ask her how things are going. She mentions the game and the dance and he reminds her that she's free to go with someone if she wants. She asks if he has any plans coming up and he mentions that some girl named Gina is throwing a party. He sounds excited about the party and even more excited about Gina and Liz is crushed. I don't know why she's surprised. Todd had a major case of the roving eyes the entire time they were together. Of course he's going to move on first.
Todd seems to be settling in just fine in Vermont. He's made a lot of friends already and seems to be having a lot of fun. It makes Liz cry when they hang up because she thinks he's already in the process of forgetting her.
A few days later at lunch, Jess corners Winston. She's determined to get him to ask her to the dance but it hasn't been going well. He just isn't taking the hint at all and she's getting frustrated. Finally she says that she thinks a beautiful, blonde, aqua-eyed girl might be eager to go with him and he thinks she's talking about Liz. He says he already asked her because he thought she might be lonely with Todd gone but she turned him down. Jess can't guide him into asking her instead and there's no way she's going to ask him.
Liz comes across a photo of the volleyball players for the Big Mesa team and sees the D-plot front and center. His name is Michael and Liz is determined to meet him. She figures she can make it happen during the game.
This is the stupidest subplot ever.
When the twins get home, they hear their father talking to Steven in the den. Steven is back from school a day early and EvilNed is not impressed. Steven says he just can't focus and EvilNed gives him a lecture about moving on and letting go of the past. Steven says he's not ready to let Tricia go yet and isn't sure he ever will be. He leaves to go have dinner with Betsy and the twins try to figure out how they can help him. Liz thinks they need to stay out of it and let him heal but Jess thinks he'll move on faster if he dates Cara. Liz doesn't think Cara is right for him at all but Jess says she's changed and they're perfect for each other now.
I don't think that says good things about Cara.
We skip to the next day. The twins get dressed for the volleyball match and ask Steven one last time to come watch them. He refuses, saying he wants to watch some game on TV instead which is just a dick move. They get to the game and Liz is so distracted by Michael that she causes her team to lose the first match. She does better the second game by not looking at Michael at all and SVH wins. The third and deciding match goes to SVH of course because the Wakefield twins are never allowed to lose anything ever.
After the match, Michael comes up to flirt with Liz a little. Apparently he likes girls who play really bad volleyball because they can't stop staring at him. He offers to drive her to the dance but Liz says she has to go home and change first. They make plans to meet at the dance and Liz is practically floating all the way back to the car.
When they get home, Steven has a friend named Artie over. Artie is trying to get Steven to go to the dance so Liz and Jess add some pressure of their own. Steven finally agrees to go. The twins change and they all go in Artie's car. Cara tries to talk to Steven when they arrive but he gives her the cold shoulder and goes off with Betsy instead. Artie asks Cara to dance and then asks her out on a date. She agrees even though her mind is on Steven.
Liz tracks downs Michael and they dance together. Liz is content to pretend he's Todd but he ruins it all by opening his mouth. He criticizes the food, makes fun of Winston, brags non-stop about how awesome he is and then doesn't pick up after himself. When Winston comes to cut in, Michael is extremely rude to him and that's the last straw for Liz. She tells him to get lost. After she dances with Winston, she tracks down Enid to talk to her. Enid encourages her to stop trying to find another Todd and to simply live her life until love finds her again.
We're halfway through the book and the B-plot and the D-plot have already concluded. I guess Steven and Jess have to carry us the rest of the way.
It's the next morning and Jess is excited because she's going over to Winston's house to work on their project. She dresses in her best jeans and sweater and then heads over there. His mom opens the door in cleaning clothes and Jess is upset because she knows immediately that the movie producer relative must not be there if Mrs Egbert is cleaning. Apparently 'Marty' will be arriving in a few days. Jess tries to get information out of Mrs Egbert about Marty but Winston interrupts the conversation. He tells Jess that they need to get to work and she reluctantly agrees. She doesn't really want to do this project with him but figures it will be worth it when she's discovered and sent to Hollywood.
Artie calls Steven to tell him about his date with Cara. Steven is immediately upset and jealous which tells him that he has feelings for Cara. He's afraid to act on them, though, because he thinks it's betraying Tricia and Betsy just seems to be reinforcing that sentiment. She truly is fucking with Steven's head in this book. I'd like to think she isn't doing it on purpose – that it's just a side effect of her own grief – but it's hard to say. The people in this town are just generally awful.
After talking to Artie about the date, Steven goes downstairs to have pizza with the twins. The topic turns to Cara and Jess again encourages him to talk to her. Liz says that Cara is an awful person and not right for Steven and Jess gets upset. She calls Liz out for being judgmental and unforgiving when it comes to Cara and Liz doubles down, saying Cara can't be redeemed. Liz is awful and it's nice to see Jess calling her out on it for a change. Steven ends up shouting them both down. He reminds Jess that she hasn't even asked him how he feels about Cara and therefore shouldn't be assuming he wants to go out with her. Then he yells at Liz for being insensitive and misguided and basically tells her that Jess was right about her being a judgmental asshole. It's a moment of beauty but I can't enjoy it because Steven is terrible.
Liz is mortified but Jess rallies and returns his fire. She says that he's just afraid of what people will think if he starts dating again. In particular, he's afraid that Betsy will be upset if he moves on. She's SPOT ON here but both Liz and Steven treat her like she's just being mean for no reason. Steven tells her to stay out of his love life and Jess replies that she will but he needs to remember that Tricia is gone and Cara is here. Maybe not the best way to put things, but again, she's right. Steven leaves the room in a huff and Liz soon follows.
#teamJess
Steven goes off to lick his wounds. He admits to himself and us that Jess is right – Liz is being a judgmental bitch and Betsy is keeping him from moving on. His main fear is that he'll forget Tricia entirely if he moves on. I think this is a fear that a lot of people have when they lose a loved one but it's not rational. You'll never, ever, forget someone you love. It's just not possible.
Steven finally decides he needs to at least call Cara and apologize for being a jerk. He figures she'll be out with Artie so he calls, intending to just leave a message on her machine. To his surprise, she answers. He apologizes for running off and leaving her at Lila's party and for being rude at the dance. She forgives him because she knows he's going through a lot. He asks her to go on a picnic with him the next day and she happily accepts. Immediately he worries about what Betsy will say when she finds out.
Fuck Betsy. Seriously.
We skip to the next afternoon and Steven's arrival at Cara's apartment. They decide to have their picnic at the zoo and have a wonderful time watching the animals and spending time together. Steven tells her that he feels better than he has in a long time and Cara smiles at him and tells him she's glad. She's really being very understanding of the situation he's in and the things he's feeling. He doesn't deserve her.
I think it's Monday now. Who knows? Jess hears that Marty has finally arrived at Winston's house so she makes sure they work on their project over there. When they get to his house, Mrs Egbert is in a tizzy. She's having a cocktail party that evening to welcome Marty and his wife and the caterer's truck broke down so they can't deliver the food. She needs Winston to drive her to pick it up. He agrees but Jess decides to stay at the house 'to work on the paper' {{{sarcastic air quotes}}}.
As soon as they leave, Jess starts scouring the house for Marty. She finally bumps into him in the hall and he isn't at all what she expects. She introduces herself and then offers to make him some coffee because he's tired from arriving so late the night before. I have no idea how she knows where the coffee stuff is but I guess we're not supposed to ask these questions. She tells him that she's heard he's in a very interesting line of work and he says something very non-committal about starting a new project soon. She tells him that she's very interested in what he does and has even considered following a similar career path herself and he asks her if she wants to come over the next day to look at the concept. She eagerly accepts and then makes an excuse to go home. She thinks he's going to tell her all about a movie script or a TV pilot or something.
It's Cara's birthday and she's getting ready to go on a date with Steven. He's called a couple of times since their picnic and even came over once to watch TV and hang out. Nothing romantic is going on but she's content just to spend time with him for now.
Steven arrives with a gift and Cara is touched to find that it's a book from her favorite author. Apparently Steven's been listening. He asks her where she made reservations and she tells him the Valley Inn. Apparently it's the last place he went with Tricia before she died and he isn't sure he can go back but he doesn't bother to tell Cara that. Honestly. All he had to do was open his stupid mouth and she would have told him they could go somewhere else. She would have understood. He's such a dick.
Dinner goes okay and then he asks her to dance. The first song is fine but the second is Tricia's favorite song Always. Steven immediately goes pale and feels sick. Cara notices because she's not a dick and asks him what's wrong. He refuses to say anything so she gently tries again. Steven starts to feel panicked and dizzy so he just runs off and leaves her standing there. Cara ends up having to take a taxi home.
Yes, I have empathy and sympathy for Steven. He's going through something that's just incredibly hard and grief is a very tricky thing. However...he doesn't get a free pass for hurting other people. That's not how this works. All he had to do was be honest with Cara about the restaurant and then about the song. She would have understood. Hell, she might have been able to comfort him and help him. The way he's treating her may be explained by his grief but it doesn't get excused. Those are two different things.
Steven calls Cara later to apologize and explains what happened. She tells him he should have told her earlier and he asks for another chance. She asks him if he feels free to date again and he admits that he doesn't. She asks him if he's ready for her to help him through this and he admits that he's not. Still, he wants another chance which is just asinine. She does the right thing and refuses.
Back with Jess. She meets up with Marty to look at his new project. To her horror, it's not a script after all but a civil engineering proposal for new trash routes in the city. Later she talks to Winston and finds out that Phil is the movie producer relative. He was supposed to visit with Marty and his wife but got called away at the last minute to do a shoot in London. Jess is absolutely devastated.
So the C-plot is done now too. That just leaves Steven.
Oh, and I guess the E-plot has to make an appearance sooner or later. They always introduce the plot for the next book in the current book somewhere.
Liz decides to go talk to Betsy since she's the puppet master in this book. She gets right to the point, telling Betsy that she's prolonging Steven's misery and suffering by making him stay in the past. Betsy protests that she's just trying to keep Tricia's memory alive. She confesses that she was an awful sister to Tricia and she's just trying to make up for it now. Liz tells her that Tricia's main wish was for Steven to get on with his life after she was gone. It's why she tried to break up with him before she died, so he would get over her quicker. Liz tells Betsy that she has to help Steven move on because that's what Tricia wanted. Betsy is upset but agrees.
When Steven gets home from a bike ride he finds a note from VileAlice telling him they've all gone out for dinner and he should remember to meet his friend under the school clock at 7:00. Steven has no idea what that means but he decides to go anyway. To his surprise, Cara rocks up. She says she got a note from her mother to meet a friend there so they figure they were set up by someone. Steven tries to talk to her but she says he's hurt her enough.
Teddy Collins, the son of creepy Mr Collins, appears with two small packages in his hands. He says that someone gave him the packages to give to Steven and Cara but refuses to say who it was. Steven's is a sketch of Cara and Cara's is a sketch of Steven. He knows that Betsy must have done them and figures that's her blessing for the two of them to date. Suddenly everything is fine and he's ready to move on with Cara.
Fuck that.
If I were her, I'd tell him to get a little therapy first or go to a grief support group or something. There's no way in hell that a little sketch fixed him and even if it did, it doesn't mean he's right for her. She deserves better.
Sigh.
But this is Sweet Valley so she kisses him and everything is solved.
Liz is in the cafeteria when she sees some girl named Emily run from the room crying. I think we've met Emily before. She's the drummer for that stupid band. Anyway, Liz follows her and finds out that Emily's father wants to send her to boarding school. Our E-plot has landed and it only gets a page and a half of attention before the book ends. So there's that.
Coming up Next: Before we can pretend to care about Emily going to boarding school we have to have a very Special Christmas. That's right, y'all, it's time for another Special Edition that won't really exist and will only fuck up the time line further. Yay.
