Gates of Paradise (Casteel, #4) in V.C. Andrews

May 27, 2015 Leigh rated it liked it

Shelves: 2020, 2015, old-favourites, audio, kindle-or-ebook, 2022

I remember enjoying this book when I was a teenager, I think I might've given it five stars back then. However as an adult I can't understand how I even read the book to the end. Annie could've been better written maybe had a backbone of some sort. Even this time I felt like I might be able to relate to her a little, but then she became some spoiled child, throwing fits and tantrums. The creepiness of Annie's dreams of romance were a bit much and were difficult to understand. There was no abuse, I remember enjoying this book when I was a teenager, I think I might've given it five stars back then. However as an adult I can't understand how I even read the book to the end. Annie could've been better written maybe had a backbone of some sort. Even this time I felt like I might be able to relate to her a little, but then she became some spoiled child, throwing fits and tantrums. The creepiness of Annie's dreams of romance were a bit much and were difficult to understand. There was no abuse, or neglect that might've pushed her and Luke together like Cathy and Chris. It wasn't even like they found out they were related after they fell in love. They were raised as siblings, knowing they were related and I don't understand why it had to be there. Can't brothers and sisters have normal relationships in these books? Anyway back to the story, Annie was quite whiny and weak throughout. After waking up to learn that both her parents are gone and she can't use her legs she seems quite happy to let some strange man who claims to be her grandfather come in and take over her life completely, to the point where he cuts off her phone and visitor access while still in the hospital. If she was ten or twelve I could see this but at eighteen why would you allow this to happen? What is wrong with you? You are an adult and capable of making your own decisions. But she goes along with it and gets carted off to the now haunted looking mansion Farthinggale Manor where she becomes a prisoner. This time around I found myself rooting for Mrs. Broadfield the nurse. She no longer seemed like such a bad person after all. For me this story dragged and was a struggle to get through, like Fallen Hearts before it I had a hard time getting into and settling down to read and when I'm easily distracted from a book it's probably not one I'm going to enjoy. My only hope is that Web of Dreams is as good as I remember it to be because I'm losing hope for what started as a very promising and enjoyable series. ...more

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Dec 23, 2017 Janet rated it liked it

I found this final edition to the Casteel Series a good read, not a great read. The first two books in the series did draw me in, however this last book was a little slow and did not contain all the usual drama, twists and turns that some of the previous novels contained.

I found Annie's recuperation from the accident too drawn out, then towards the end of the novel the pace of the storyline picked up. This is how the last book ended too. The final chapters seemed to cram in a lot in so few pages ...more

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