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Flowers in the Attic

Written by: Gillian Flynn - foreword,V. C. Andrews
Narrated by: Mena Suvari,Gillian Flynn - foreword
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Publisher's Summary

Celebrate the 40th anniversary of the enduring gothic masterpiece Flowers in the Attic - the unforgettable forbidden love story that earned V.C. Andrews a fiercely devoted fan base and became an international cult classic.

At the top of the stairs there are four secrets hidden - blond, innocent, and fighting for their lives....

They were a perfect and beautiful family - until a heartbreaking tragedy shattered their happiness. Now, for the sake of an inheritance that will ensure their future, the children must be hidden away out of sight, as if they never existed. They are kept in the attic of their grandmother’s labyrinthine mansion, isolated and alone. As the visits from their seemingly unconcerned mother slowly dwindle, the four children grow ever closer and depend upon one another to survive both this cramped world and their cruel grandmother. A suspenseful and thrilling tale of family, greed, murder, and forbidden love, Flowers in the Attic is the unputdownable first novel of the epic Dollanganger family saga.

The Dollanganger series includes: Flowers in the Attic, Petals in the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, Garden of Shadows, Beneath the Attic, and Out of the Attic

©1979 V.C. Andrews (P)2019 Simon & Schuster Audio

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BEWARE OF FORWARD - SPOILER

I have never read this book before, and started at the beginning with the forward by Gillian Flynn. I really wish this had been at the end of the book... I hit pause as soon as I realized that she was giving away every plot twist in quick succession. I still cannot stop thinking ahead as I listen to the actual book that I know what is coming. I understand this is a special edition and most people interested in this edition have likely read the book before, but it would be great to have a disclaimer for those who have never read it so the book is not ruined before it even starts.

That being said, the book is wonderful and the narration is perfect! I love Mena Suvari's voice, she lends it to the character of Cathy is a sincere and honest way.

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6 people found this helpful

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Loved it

I always go back to this book for when I want to read a V.C Andrews. This story never gets old, I first read it when I was 15, and thought how tragic for the children, and how cruel the grandmother was, only to discover the one you love the most can be even crueler.

Could have done without the forward thou.

I loved Mena as the narrator , she had the right emotion for the part. I hope she continues to narrate the rest of this series.

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Skip the Foreword

This production suffers from the same mistake made in the recording of Stephen King's 'Running Man' (also available on Audible): the inclusion of an introductory editorial that spoils a main twist in the story. Even if you haven't read this book before (or haven't seen one of the movie adaptations), Gillian Flynn's perceptive Foreword nonsensically gives away the surprises. That said, this book is immersive (and boundary-bending). The characters are well-written and worthy of empathy, but experience life events so uncomfortably cringeworthy that it's frankly amazing that V.C. Andrews is somehow able to make them relatable. To be honest, many of the events in the novel are ludicrously unrealistic - and actually laughably overdramatic at times - but the prose is good enough to (largely) make up for some glaring deficiencies. This novel is fascinating and disturbing at the same time - it's a viscerally affecting read.

Despite being a career actress, Mena Suvari ('Six Feet Under'; 'Boy Meets World') is an excellent reader (many actors aren't). A professional reader could certainly do an equally good job, but Suvari reads with emotion and flawless timbre/cadence (although her pacing is a little slow).

The writing of this uncommonly bleak but well-known book (on my "Bucket Read" list for many years) is remarkable, the narration is excellent, and the production quality is very good. Yes, you need to be able to suspend logic to buy the premise..but it’s fairly easy to do most of the time. With the exception of adding the head-scratching Foreword, this is an exemplary audiobook. Even with it, the product rates 7 out of 10 stars. I personally won't be continuing with the Dollanganger series, but you could justifiably do so.

TO THE PRODUCERS: Please make Flynn's contribution an Afterword!!..and if you decide to record more books in the series, use Suvari

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Vc Andrews an amazing author flowers in the attic a classic I intend on reading many times more

What a great story I couldn’t put it down till it was finished one of vc Andrew greats can’t wait to finish the hole series

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Just like I remember.

I read this book when I was a teenager. Listening to it now as an audiobook book is so much fun and I just love it.

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  • Sam
  • 2023-01-29

Love it!

This is one of my all time favourite series! However the voice actor (is that the correct term) took a bit for me to get into. :)

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where are the others book in the series

Im disapointed that the other book of the series arent on audible, except the last two

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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Classic but not as good as I remember

I read this book when it first came out and remember loving it. But now the story is underwhelming to me. The narrator is ok, almost too expressive tho. Sometime I wanted to rub my ears off when she did the children’s voices.

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So well narrated….

The narrator made this tale of horror so much more palatable for me. Gothic tales have never appealed to me but I enjoyed this experience a lot. The relationships were so complex and evil well demonstrated!

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Foreword ruins the whole book!!

Why would you include a foreword that very effectively summarizes and reveals all the plot points and secrets?!? Holy spoiler alert! If you want to enjoy this book the way it was intended and find out things gradually when they are revealed in the story line, then DO NOT LISTEN TO THE FOREWORD!

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  • Nicole
  • 2020-03-28

Loved the book so much but...

I loved listening to this book, the story has always intrigued me. The narration was very good. Story is so good...But if you’ve never read/listened to the story before skip the whole forward part because it completely ruins it. It had been a long time and I had forgotten many things about the story but the forward gives it all away. Other than that totally worth it and loved it.

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69 people found this helpful

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  • Amazon Customer
  • 2020-11-19

Where is Book 2????

Where is Petals on the Wind? Am I supposed to just skip to Book 3

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  • skirtgirl
  • 2020-02-11

Good but distressing story

Greatly enjoyed this book. It evoked a great deal of emotion most of which was hate and disgust. The foreword for the book made me angry because it told some facts about the story that should have been left for the reader to discover! Why would you allow that??

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  • Jerry Byers
  • 2020-02-12

a rewrite of what was a very good read

this isnt VC Andrews style of writing too many changes and details ommitted. The story is the same but im not left with any of the questions that the real book left. this seems more of a story written after the lifetime movie.

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  • Jayne
  • 2019-11-21

Unbelievable

I have a bit of a compulsive nature which makes me finish books. I did consider not finishing Flowers in the Attic.This book is not well written, it is not interesting. I just kept wishing it would end. If you like incest, sex with children, intent to kill, those kinds of things, well maybe you should read this. I keep thinking that who ever wrote this has something seriously wrong with them. This is a sick sick mind in my opinion.

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  • Celestina Warbeck
  • 2021-07-06

SKIP THE FORWARD to avoid spoilers

I read this book as a teen and remember being really impacted by the sorry. It's intense and disturbing at times vbut you just have to keep reading it. I didn't love the narration but the book is good.

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  • Andrew Holsapple
  • 2020-02-18

Good read for anyone

I have loved this book and ready it many times since I seen the movie. V.c. Andrews is a great writer and I hope to read more of hers in the future. I just wish they would add the second book petals on the wind to audible!

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  • Mark
  • 2021-06-01

Pure Unadulterated Depression

My Lord.. I just feel sad and not good after listening to this. I mean the narrator was great and the story started intriguing, but Christ there’s only so much someone can take. I’m gonna go take a Zoloft now..

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  • Chantal Noordeloos
  • 2021-06-04

Different reading as an adult

I read this as a dramatic tween, and it’s definitely very different reading this as a critical adult. The story is dark (I don’t understand that people call it horror, though it does show the very worst of humans) The incest isn’t that shocking in this context, I was more upset by the rape. I wish it hadn’t been written in first person. The writing is decent, but first person tends to give most stories like this a whiny undertone. I got really sick about hearing how gorgeous everyone was, and there was an unhealthy interest in the beauty of her parents and siblings by the protagonist. She definitely had a bit of a screw loose from page one

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  • Tiffany
  • 2020-01-03

Still a good story I guess

First, the forward contains major plot spoilers. I have seen the movie, but it was so long ago I'd forgotten some parts. The spoilers played automatically as the first chapter and I was super disappointed.

Second, the voice actress was pleasant to listen to, but the voices she used for all the characters were nearly the same. It was hard to tell who was talking sometimes.

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  • Alice
  • 2022-12-13

one of my fav

i have the book in english, french and spanish. such a poignant story ! very well read

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