Heaven

Rating:
Summary: vc andrews never fails
Review: this book tells the story of heaven and very poor existence in
the backwoods with her sisters and brothers. she is smart and
pretty but can't get past being poor and hungry all the time
because her lazy father is a poor provider. but she manages to
keep the family together and fed most of the time until one day
her father comes home with and evil plot that will ruin all of
her dreams and tear the family apart. while this book is not
as good as the flower in the attic series it is definitely worth
reading.

Rating:
Summary: One of the Best book of VC Andrews!
Review: I think one of the best book I had red of VC Andrews "Heaven" is one of the best, well is one of the best book I had ever read. The Castel serie is very good. The characters in the book become real to the reader, is really a page turner. I remember reading for the first time this novel I was hook on VC Andrews series and mostly the Castel one. If you are a fan of VC Andrews and didn't read yet this serie you would find out this is one of the best if you didn't know about this serie well lucky you, you can read it and become a fan of this great writer who saddly is not here anymore! Heaven was one of my favorite book of this author!

Rating:
Summary: suitable for teenagers
Review: I was first introduced to V.C. Andrews about 7 years ago when I was in 7th grade. Although I think that "Flowers In The Attic" was really Andrews' breakthrough, "Heaven" is a novel that is more suitable for pre-teens and teenagers.

The novel reads easily but this does not weaken the moving story. Heaven, the main character, is followed by the audience as she grows up and struggles the cruelties of life. Despite the fact that most readers will not find their own lives analogous to Heaven's, this book is still the perfect coming-of-age novel, emphasizing the importance of facing problems head on and being able to find goodness in dark places.

Rating:
Summary: Old School Favorite
Review: I don't remember if I read this book first or V.C.'s previous boks but I did love this book as it hooked me in. I'm not a professional critic and only submitting this as my own opinion and interest.

The beginning was captivating as I read on more and more and felt i was there as an observer of this poor little girl going through these hardships and findng her own self of who she is and from. I also felt that I can relate to some of the situations IRL and understood her rollercoater emotions and her personal journey...

Ever since I read this I have followed V.C.'s other well and descriptive written books or series...

Now I have to go back to collecting the rest of her books.

Thank you

Rating:
Summary: extremely good book!
Review: This book is the first in the Heaven series. It is one of the best in the series in my opinion. It's filled with emotion and V.C. Andrews creates an unbelievablely realistic potrait of Heaven's harsh life. It paints a vivid picture in my head. It's filled with twists that you wouldn't really expect. At the beginning it is quite slow but it picks up the pace until you can't put it down! An excellent book =o)

Rating:
Summary: I love this book
Review: This book was forced on us in 12th grade English class and I didn't want to read it at first but after the first chapter I couldn't put it down. I must've read the whole thing in an hour! A very good read. One of V.C.'s best.

Rating:
Summary: You have to read this book!!
Review: Hey!! I started reading this book because my language arts teacher requires us to read three hours a week, and I went to the library and checked out the entire Casteel series because I heard that V.C. Andrews was a good writer. I could not put the book down!! I read that book straight through for five hours because every time I told myself I needed to stop reading, something good would happen and I couldn't put it down.
Heaven was about a girl named Heaven and her life as being a "no good Casteel" in the Willies. I almost cried when Pa started selling all the kids! The way the author described it so vividly made it almost heartbreaking. And then when Heaven was sold and went to live with Kitty and Cal Dennison and the Kitty treated her was horrible!! Can you imagine being put in a scalding hot bath? I was shocked when Heaven had that affair with Cal Dennison-that was disgusting!! I'm not going to say the ending-you must read this book!! Go buy it now!!

Rating:
Summary: The Beginning of the Casteel Series
Review: "Heaven" is the first book in one of my favorite series by V. C. Andrews. It begins in the Willies, a mountain range in West Virginia. This is where Heaven Leigh Casteel has grown up in poverty for the past ten years, along with her four siblings (Tom, Fanny, Keith, and Our Jane), father and stepmother (Luke and Sarah), and grandparents. All nine family members share a pitiful cabin high above the small town of Winnerrow.

One night, Heaven's grandmother takes her to the grave site of her real mother (Leigh VanVoreen, aka "Angel"), who had died shortly after giving birth to her. Leigh has always remained a mystery to Heaven (in fact, Heaven never knew she had a different mother other than Sarah), until her grandmother gives her Leigh's suitcase, which is filled with expensive items from her mother's previous life in Boston.

After that revelation, Heaven vows to never confess her birth right to anyone, especially her siblings, who she wants to keep protected. She has a pretty good relationship with all of them, except for her younger sister, Fanny, who has always been a thorn in her side. Fanny's extremely jealous of her half-sister and basically makes Heaven's life hell. She even tries repeatedly to come between Heaven and her new boyfriend, Logan Stonewall (the son of a well-to-do pharmacist), but without any success.

Even though their life is pretty pathetic so far, Heaven and her siblings receive one shock after another when their grandmother dies, and then Sarah (their stepmother) runs away after giving birth to a stillborn baby, which she believes was the result of Luke's infidelity. The biggest blow of all comes shortly after Sarah leaves, around Christmas time. Luke surprises everyone with an unthinkable Christmas present that will supposedly benefit the entire family: he intends to sell all five of his children for $500 a piece. Keith and Our Jane are the first to be "adopted". Fanny is next, taken in by Reverend Wayland Wise and his wife; then Tom, to a demanding farmer; and finally, Heaven, sold to an ex-lover of her father's (Kitty Dennison) and her submissive husband (Calhoun). Yet Cal is hardly a decent father. He would rather be Heaven's first lover than a role model. And Kitty isn't innocent of abuse either. She degrades Heaven with chemical baths and even turns her into a present-day Cinderella.

As expected in all of V. C. Andrews' books, Heaven's life is full of trauma and secrets. But her story certainly doesn't end here. It continues with "Dark Angel" and "Fallen Hearts", then "Gates of Paradise" and "Web of Dreams", the two separate stories of her daughter (Annie) and her mother (Leigh). I highly recommend this book, as well as the four other books in the Casteel series.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Having read all the Andrews series, I feel that the Casteel series is the best. The content was great and each book got more interesting, instead of dragging on and on. The twists and turns were mind-boggling yet intriging. It was very easy to feel sorry for Heaven. She started out weak, however, became hardened as the series came along, allowing you to envy her strength at the end. I loved this series also because you can relate to the feelings Heaven has in the books.

Rating:
Summary: A great read for everyone
Review: I thought that this book was great. while there is some sexual content... it was still good. The story was truly magnificent and it really kept me reading. This is the first book that I have read by V.C. Andrews... but I will definately read more of her books.