Flowers in the Attic, the cult classic by V.C. Andrews

This cult classic novel was, and still is, scandalous and controversial, but it was one of my favorites when I was a teenager. 

This is the story of four pampered siblings, two sisters and two brother, Cathy, Chris, Cory and Carrie. When their father is killed in an accident, the four children and their mother become destitute due to huge debts and are taken by their mother to live with their grandparents in an enormous creepy mansion.

Seeped in secrets and mystery, the children are told that they must stay in the attic for a short time while their mother mends her relationship with her father. Confined to a small room and a vast spooky attic, these children live secluded in the attic for six very long years.

This Gothic-style horror story includes themes of incest and deranged religious fervor and might not be for everyone.

When first publish in 1979 The Washington Post called it "deranged swill" and said the the author was the "worst writer I have ever read", but after generations of reader have discovered this novel, it has become a cult classic and The Encyclopedia of Pulp Fiction Writers called Andrews the "Emily Bronte of the MTV Generation". However, it went on to become a best-seller. It's still in print and being read as of 2020 and it's being read by new generations, right up to the millennials and beyond.

I believe fiction doesn't always need enormous depth or multiple layers or lessons to be an enjoyable book, sometimes a good story is enough, so I recommend it to those who aren't faint of heart or squeamish and for those who sometimes read just for the fun of reading.