**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.
From the Back of the Book: No one to turn to.... Ever since Regina Morrow's tragic death at Molly Hecht's party, everyone has been treating Molly as if she has the plague. Nobody at school wants to talk to her, her parents have permanently grounded her, and even her good friend Justin Belson is avoiding her. Every time Molly tries to make amends, nobody will listen. So when Buzz, a drug dealer who's hiding from the police, calls Molly and announces he's leaving town, she's more than ready to go with him. She'd rather flee to Mexico with Buzz than walk the halls of Sweet Valley High alone. Only Elizabeth senses that Molly is troubled, but even she may be too late to stop her from running away with a fugitive.
***I'm getting so sick of them trying to pretend that Liz is some kind of a hero and she's the only one in Sweet Valley that can save anyone. Liz is toxic as fuck and her head is so far up her own ass that there's no way she's noticing anything about anyone else.***
TRIGGER WARNING: This book again features discussion of drug use, drug addiction and parental neglect. There is a lot of discussion about the death of a teenager that happened in the last book. If any of these things will steal your peace, please skip this blog.
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
*Jeffrey French – Liz's new victim....I mean love interest
There are more but these are the main characters that plague us book after book.
This book was published in 1987 and this is my first time reading it. I swear the twins need better agents because they can't even get face time on the covers of their own series at this point. Again, the women on the cover look too old to be sixteen but we're used to that by now.
In the last book, Bruce and Regina broke up because he wanted to date Amy too. Regina felt lied to and abandoned by all her friends so she started hanging out with a guy named Justin. Justin used to be friends with a girl named Molly who was very into the drug scene in Sweet Valley. At a party, Regina decided to try cocaine to prove that she wasn't boring. She had a rare reaction to the drug which led to her having a heart attack. She died and everyone blamed Molly.
Missing, Presumed Dead (but really just trapped beneath the Wakefield Compound): Johanna, Patty and Eddie who pretty much only existed for one book continue to be just a whisper of a memory in Sweet Valley. Robin, Michael, George and Aaron are still below ground as well. It's been awhile. Kirk and Neil are still gracing milk cartons and I'm wondering if we'll ever see them topside again.
Released from the Wakefield Dungeon: Steven and Penny are the only two that managed to dig their way out of the Compound. I guess they closed the tunnel before the others could follow.
We actually pick up right where the last book left off – after that weird memorial assembly. Jeffrey brushes Liz's “honey-gold” hair away from her face and declares his love. He says he doesn't know what he'd do without her. I have the sneaking suspicion that he's going to find out sooner or later. Todd has to come back some day, right? And as soon as he does, I think Mr Jeffrey is going to find himself single.
Liz reviews the last book for us. Then she reviews the book where Amy came back to town more “frivolous” than she had been in junior high. I don't think we really needed either of these reviews but that's Pascal for you.
Speaking of which...........
{{{Note from the blogger: I'm sure you've noticed that I sometimes blame the shortcomings of these books on the ghost writer and sometimes on Pascal. I originally thought that these books were all written by the same ghost writer because they're all credited as “Kate William”. Later, I found out that Kate William was a group of authors and not a single individual. That confused me a little. We see a consistent theme of fat phobia, racism and classism throughout these books. It's so consistent that I really believed the same person wrote them all. For different authors to keep inserting this ugliness book after book, one of two things has to be happening. Either they are instructed to do so or it's being put in after they write the majority of the story. Do I know for sure who is either giving the instructions or making the changes? No. But Pascal's name is on the fucking book so she's signing off on everything that's in it. Therefore, I will solely be blaming her for all the awful shit she allows to be written in her name. That's all.}}}
Back to it, I guess.
Liz can't understand how Regina let herself get talked into doing drugs. Because only dumb people do that and Regina wasn't dumb. We're off to a great start here.
We get our requisite twin description. I'm skipping over the physical stuff because I just don't care. Jess is described as “helter-skelter” which is an interesting choice of words. Helter-skelter invokes images of Charles Manson and the terrible murders his followers committed. I get that Pascal is using it correctly here but I just can't shake the connection. Liz is described as “responsible and thoughtful” which is just laughable at this point. We know better.
When Liz gets home, Steven is there. He says they're going to have a family meeting. Liz reviews the book where his girlfriend died. I guess that's her role now – record keeper. VileAlice and EvilNed give their kids a “Just Say No” speech that would have made Nancy Regan proud. It's very dramatic and heavy-handed with lots of 'drugs are never the answer' sprinkled in.
Jess blames Molly for Regina's death. EvilNed says that Regina made her own decisions which is something I think the entire town needs to keep in mind. Jess has a moment where she feels guilty for not being nicer to Regina. She wants to do something to make up for it. Liz thinks it's a nice idea but assumes Jess will never actually manage to do anything.
Nice, Liz.
Liz remembers Regina and how she was so beautiful that Liz “hadn't been able to believe Regina was deaf” because she didn't look handicapped.
I beg your finest pardon?
You did NOT just say that.
I have to be honest.....I would love to go on a very long, hopefully entertaining rant about just how fucked up that is but I find myself at a loss for words. I can't believe that was written, let alone published. What the fuck, Pascal? Seriously? What is wrong with you?
Fucking hell.
We skip to Monday. Jess tells Lila and Cara that she wants to do something to honor Regina. They ask what she wants to do. She says she doesn't know. It was a complete waste of two pages. Jess sees Molly across the cafeteria and goes on a rant about how it's all Molly's fault that Regina is dead (false). Lila and Cara agree. Lila proposes that Justin is also to blame but Jess shuts that right down for some reason. In her eyes, Molly is the only one to blame.
We land in Justin's head. He's grieving and feeling guilty for taking Regina to the party. He vows to leave Molly and her druggie crowd behind him to honor his father and Regina. Molly comes up and tries to talk to him but he blows her off and walks away.
I feel really bad for Justin, y'all. He's shouldering some heavy burdens and no one seems to care about him at all. I see you, Justin. I care.
We slide into Molly's head in the middle of the page with no indication of a break. I hate that. She thinks drugs cost her Justin and she mourns the loss of his friendship. She also feels responsible for Regina's death but she also assigns blame to Bruce, Amy, Regina herself and Buzz the drug dealer. She doesn't understand why she's being assigned 100% of the blame when she didn't bring the cocaine and she didn't force Regina to snort it.
Molly is in trouble with her parents for throwing the party and for doing drugs. They also blame her for Regina's death and they've placed her on pretty strict restrictions. Molly begs them to allow her to transfer schools because she's miserable but her dad says that attending SVH is her punishment.
Raise your hand if you also think attending SVH would be a punishment.
Oh, good. We're all in agreement then.
Her dad says she has to “face those kids” and “take what's coming to you”. Her dad's an asshole. She made a mistake. She didn't murder Regina.
Now we're with Jess and/or Liz. Jess reminds Liz of the Pi Beta Alpha meeting at lunch the next day. Liz doesn't think it's appropriate to have one but Jess insists.
We skip to the meeting. Jess wants to start a scholarship in Regina's honor to be awarded to a student who has overcome hardship. They bicker a bit about logistics but all agree it's a good idea. Someone named Jennifer who never existed before, asks how they're going to raise that much money. They discuss ideas and it's the basics like bake sales, etc. Liz is proud of Jess for actually following through with something for once.
Fuck you, Liz.
Back with Molly. She tries to talk to Liz but Liz refuses to listen to her. You know, because Liz is actually an asshole. Molly is devastated. She drives around and ends up at the cemetery. She decides to visit Regina's grave, thinking that Regina is the only one in town who won't shun her at this point. Nicholas is there and he's pissed to see Molly. He lurches at her, screaming that she killed his sister. She runs off, terrified.
This is excessive, Pascal.
Molly goes home upset. Buzz calls. He says he wanted to check on her and tells her that Regina's death wasn't her fault. She's relieved to find one person who doesn't blame her. He asks her to come to Kelly's later so he can talk to her. He says he'll be behind the bar.
Nothing good ever happens at Kelly's.
We land in Buzz's head which just pisses me off. He wants to leave Sweet Valley but he needs money. He plans to use Molly to get the funds.
Back with Jess and/or Liz. Jess is struggling to figure out how to set up the scholarship. She asks her dad for advice and he volunteers to manage the entire thing. For once, EvilNed steps up.
Liz feels bad for not talking to Molly but instead of calling her, she calls Justin. He's immediately suspicious of her motive for calling and I enjoy that. She tells him that Molly needs a friend. He tells her that she doesn't know anything about the situation and she gets offended. I enjoyed that too. She asks him to give Molly another chance and he says his life got seriously messed up when they were friends. He doesn't want it to happen again so he needs to keep his distance. At this point, Liz should back off and apologize because what he said is completely reasonable but Liz is an asshole. She thinks she knows best and she continues to push him.
You know, Liz, you could offer to be Molly's friend. But you won't because she's the pariah of the school and you refuse to take the social hit.
Why does Pascal try to make Justin look like the bad guy for setting this perfectly reasonable and healthy boundary? He has every right to protect himself from someone who causes him pain and brings chaos into his life. Any adult with a functioning brain would tell him that he's doing the right thing. But Pascal demonizes him for it. She really sucks.
We're back with Molly. She sneaks out to meet Buzz. He flirts with her and gets pretty handsy with this underage girl. He tells her that he's the only one who understands her and that everyone else in town hates her guts but he wants to be her friend. It's exactly what she's aching to hear. He says that they belong together and he's never felt this way about a girl before. Then he drops the bomb that he needs to leave town because the police are hunting for him. He asks her to come with him. She loves the idea of getting away from everyone and escaping to a place where no one knows her. He asks if she has any money and she admits that she has some saved for college. He asks her to meet him there the next day with the money and then they'll run away to Mexico.
We're with Jess and/or Liz. Nicholas shows up at the compound the next morning and Jess tries to flirt with him a little. He doesn't notice. She takes over Liz's role as the record keeper and reviews the book where Nicholas came to Sweet Valley and Liz cheated on Todd with him. Like we could forget that.
Jess tells Nicholas about the scholarship and he thanks her. Then he asks to see Liz. Jess gives up on trying to get his attention.
Nicholas drives Liz to school and explains the scene at the cemetery on the way. He feels bad for the way he acted and asks Liz to apologize to Molly for him. Liz says she will and his remorse makes her feel bad for the way she treated Molly as well.
When she gets to school, Liz can't bring herself to actually talk to Molly with other people around so she decides to hassle poor Justin again instead.
I hate it that Pascal is writing Justin as selfish here and Liz as selfless. Liz won't even fucking talk to Molly.
We're with Justin and I just want to take him out of this book and put him somewhere where he'll be safe. He's all broken and he thinks that everything he touches falls apart.
No, Justin, that's Liz.
Speaking of, the bitch herself approaches. She notices that he's struggling with an English paper and offers to help him ONLY if he talks to Molly and becomes her friend again.
Liz, he's already told you that being friends with Molly was dangerous to his mental and emotional well-being. Leave him alone, you self-absorbed shrew.
Liz says that someone needs to tell Molly that it wasn't her fault and that someone has to be Justin because Liz can't be seen talking to her. Justin tells her again that he can't be around the drugs. Liz says that he needs to try to help Molly stop using and he says he already did. Many times. She tells him he has to try again.
HE IS A FUCKING CHILD, PASCAL. THIS IS NOT HIS RESPONSIBILITY. HE TRIED. THERE'S NOTHING MORE HE CAN DO AND TO INSINUATE OTHERWISE IS APPALLING.
Poor Justin says he'll think about it.
We're with Jess and/or the bitch. Lila introduces our B-plot super early. Sandra has been seen with Manuel. Cara replies “that Mexican guy?” in a way that feels REALLY icky.
Fuck you, Pascal.
The next book is going to be all kinds of fun. I can already tell.
Jess says that Sandra's parents are racists. I expected nothing less.
Back with Molly. She goes to the office to ask the secretary about how to get a bus to the bank. There's no reason for her to do this other than Pascal needed a way for Cara to overhear her so she could tell Liz. It makes no sense otherwise.
Molly leaves school in the middle of the day to withdraw the money. She takes out $2300 in 50's for some asinine reason. Liz arrives in time to see her with the giant stack of money. Liz tries to talk to her since there's no one from SVH to see her but Molly tells her to shove it. I enjoyed that a lot.
Back with Justin. He decides to talk to Molly but he can't find her. He ends up getting detention for skipping class to try to locate her.
We land in Liz's head just so creepy Mr Collins can give a very cringey speech about how Molly needs help, not hate and how they all have a responsibility to keep each other off drugs. I don't even have the strength to rant about that so I'll just tell creepy Mr Collins to kindly go fuck himself.
Back with Justin. He goes home to find his mom passed out on the couch. Because of Liz, he now blames himself for not helping his mom get off drugs. He says it's his biggest fault.
Fuck you, Pascal.
My heart is broken for this fictional boy.
He makes his own dinner because no one else is going to take care of him. It's a cheese sandwich because his mom spends her money on drugs and not food. Liz calls and tells him about seeing Molly at the bank with an absurd stack of fifties. They decide to go talk to her together. Justin picks up Liz and they head for Molly's house. They get there just in time to see her drive off in her mother's car.
Justin and Liz follow Molly to Kelly's. Justin sees Buzz and tells Liz to go inside and call the cops. He figures Buzz and Molly will head south but it doesn't really make sense how he knows this. Pascal just needed Liz to be able to point the cops in the right direction so she can be responsible for saving the day.
Justin follows Buzz's car when it leaves the bar. They drive for awhile and then Justin cuts Buzz off, forcing him to stop. Justin gets out and begs Molly not to leave with Buzz. He tells her that Regina's death wasn't her fault. Molly throws herself into his arms and sobs. Buzz demands the money and pulls a knife when he doesn't get it. He tries to stab Justin who ninja kicks the knife out of his hand. I swear this happened in that book where Jess got attacked too. Pascal likes the ninja kick. Buzz and Justin fight until Justin knocks him out. The police arrive, being miraculously directed by Liz to the exact spot.
We're back with the bitch. Molly seeks her out to thank her for doing absolutely the bare minimum. She says she's going to turn her life around and I hope she does for Justin's sake.
The book ends with Jess and Cara seeing Sandra and Manuel together. They're shocked. I'm filled with trepidation for the next book.
Guys, this book nearly broke me. I finished it a month ago and I've had the notes typed up for weeks. I just couldn't bring myself to post it because that meant I'd have to read through my notes again in order to edit. I can't even believe Pascal was willing to put her name on any of this. The ideas in here are so fucking harmful. I hate to think of young girls reading this and taking any of it to heart.
Coming up Next: Racism probably. Unless I can find that Double Jeopardy Super Thriller. I don't think it's on KU and I refuse to give Pascal's estate any of my money.
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