Sweet Valley Confidential: 10 Years Later

Heavy sigh.  Heavy, heavy sigh.  Remember my enthusiasm about this book?  If you missed it, you can find it here.  Unfortunately, the reviews were right and I was wrong.  The book is so bad that I'm mad at the author for even writing it.  Yes, it's that bad.

I was so hoping Ms. Pascal would take the opportunity to develop the twins, Elizabeth and Jessica, into strong women that were doing their part in the world.  I envisioned a novel where they still struggled with their sibling rivalry, but ideally had put their differences aside and had become flourishing citizens.  I was ready for career-minded twins on the verge of marriage or motherhood.  Or maybe they would be returning to Sweet Valley from a stint in the Peace Corps.  I don't know.  I was ready for anything, but instead I got a bunch of nothing.

Instead, I got adultery, divorce, drug use, and alcoholism.  And that was just in the first 115 pages!  It was as if the author decided the only way to prove herself has a hip, 21st century author was to throw in all of the recent headlines from E!News. SPOILER ALERT: Did the twins have a gay brother in the old books?  Well, they do now.   As if all of that wasn't enough, she also threw in a possible murder/suicide.  Why? 

I really couldn't find one thing about the book that I liked.  I tried.  I really did.  But hey, there is ONE piece of good news...the book is lendable on my nook.  The first person that contacts me gets it for free (if you have a nook).  Anyone?  Bueller?