Entries tagged with !fandom: sweet valley

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2024 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #108: Left at the Altar!

Jessica Wakefield is living a double life! At the same time she and her twin sister, Elizabeth, are helping their new friend, Sue Gibbons, plan her wedding, Jessica's meeting secret with Sue's fiance, Jeremy Randall. Elizabeth warns her to stay away, but Jessica can't help herself - she's never been so much in love!

When Jeremy tells her he can't go through with marrying Sue, Jessica is ecstatic. But tragedy intervenes when Sue is stricken by a deadly disease, and torn by guilt, Jeremy decides he must walk down the aisle.

Will Jessica stand by and let Jeremy say "I do"?

Well, I suppose it was inevitable that a great book (by SV standards) is followed by a complete dud. This was poorly written, the characters reduced to crude personality traits, and pushed around the chess board in service of the plot. Anything approaching reality was thrown out the window. It was completely devoid of any nuance or callback to previous canon (or even the previous book!). What a letdown.

( I never knew it was too much to ask for two consecutive books to be written by the same ghostwriter )

I can only just shake my head at this nonsense. Perhaps most amusing of all, the little teaser blurb calls the next three-part series Sweet Valley Scandal, when in fact this two-parter was actually labeled that and the rest of the series was called something else. It's sloppy right to the final word, which is only fitting IMO.

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2024 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #107: Jessica's Secret Love

When Jessica Wakefield meets Jeremy Randall on the beach, she can't believe her eyes. He's everything she's always dreamed of and more. It's love at first sight for him, too, and they share an intimate kiss. Then Jeremy says he can't see her again, and Jessica doesn't know what to think. But soon she understands all too well. He's engaged to the Wakefields' houseguest!

Sue Gibbons, daughter of Alice Wakefield's college roommate, has come to Sweet Valley to get married. She and Jessica become instant best friends, and Jessica knows she's going to love Sue's fiancé. When she finally meets him and discovers it's Jeremy, she realizes how right she was! She does love Sue's fiancé, and she wants Jeremy Randall, engaged or not, for herself!

I am tickled at how much I liked this book, especially given how much I loathed the previous mini-arc about werewolves in London. But this was written by a ghostie with an actual sense of humor and more than passing familiarity with canon, which certainly helped things! I probably wasn't meant to find it as humorous as I did, but the meta-fan in me got a real kick out of this.

( On soulmates, sisterhood, and oblivious teenagers )

This was absolutely ridiculous, but the best part of it is that everyone involved seemed aware of at least some of the ridiculousness, even if it wasn't the part that they were actively engaged in. This ghostie really knocked this one out of the park, and I'm actually looking forward to reading the next book!

Current Mood: satisfied

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2024 Nostalgia Re-readathon, Part I

Its officially October, and that means it's time for

impy & my annual nostalgia re-readathon. We usually dip into Sweet Valley series for this, and the last couple of years we've also been reading one book from Christopher Pike's The Last Vampire miniseries. This year we're adding the Baby-sitters Club to the mix.

I'm super stoked and can't wait to start!! As I have for the last couple of years, I will be posting my reviews of the books here, along with the covers and back summaries.

Here's the schedule:

Week of 10/06/24: SVU Super Thriller #3 Kiss of the Vampire
Week of 10/13/24: SVU Super Thriller #11 Love & Murder
Week of 10/20/24: BSC Super Mystery #1 Baby-sitters' Haunted House
Week of 10/27/24: The Last Vampire #4 Phantom

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2024 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVU Thriller #11: Love and Murder

The man of her nightmares...

When Lila Fowler meets mysterious, sexy Damon Price, the connection is too intense for words. Lila instantly feels as if she's known him for ages. And when she experiences the recklessly passionate thrill of his kisses, she knows he feels the same. But despite their deep romantic bond, Lila knows nothing about Damon's past.

Then the nightmares begin. Vivid, violent nightmares from another era in which she becomes Flora Grey, the wife of Theodore, an abusive man who looks exactly like Damon. Lila soon discovers that the Greys really existed...and Flora was murdered by her husband. The more Lila learns about the couple, the more Damon seems to adopt Theodore's wicked ways. Could Flora's tragic history be repeating itself?

I sail the good ship Bruce/Lila as an OTP for the Sweet Valley universe, so when this book opened with lots of references to Lila's deceased Italian count husband Tisiano, I knew I was in for a rough ride. Lila and Tisiano married right after SVH and lived for a while in his native Italy, before he was killed in a Jet Ski incident. Lila returned to Sweet Valley and started attending SVU with her lifelong friends. This is Super Thriller #11, set around the late-#30s of the SVU canon; if you didn't know any better, you'd think it was super early canon. Bruce/Lila is an established pairing, but this ghostie swipes it aside with ease, so less than a chapter into this, my back was already up. Things were only made worse when Jessica arrives in the plot and is the vain, spoiled, selfish early-SVH canon version of Jessica. The one who only ever thinks in terms of revenge. This is my least favorite Jessica, and after she was so awesome in ST #3, I was not looking forward to shenanigans here.

( I basically had to force myself to read this all in one go because I knew I'd never willingly pick it up. )

There are so laugh out loud moments (caller ID machine! microfiche cataloged on CD-ROM! Jessica and Lila doing makeovers during their BFF Friday night "stay awake party," which included the 'Elizabeth Wakefield prom' look!), and the ghostie worked hard to redeem Damon, but yeah. The WTFery of it all is just too much for me. Constantly weepy Lila, surprise!evil twin deux es machina, Damon scoffing away the problem of TAs dating undergrads who are taking their classes - just, ugh. No thank you! This is not a book I will return to anytime soon.

I'm glad we're pivoting to another series for this week's entry in the re-readathon!

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2024 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVU Thriller #3: Kiss of the Vampire

A creature of the night...

Elizabeth Wakefield is falling in love...with Nicholas des Perdu, her boyfriend Tom Watts's new boss. Nicholas is tall, dark, dangerously handsome...and keeper of a deadly secret. Will Elizabeth abandon her friends, her family - and even her life - to be with the man she longs for?

Jessica Wakefield is desperate to save her twin sister - but she's up against a force stronger than any she's ever known. Together Jessica and Tom must fight the evil that threatens to destroy them all.

"Randy Mason, boy nerd turned Greek god" is not a sentence I thought I'd ever read, but here we are. Apparently the computer nerd extraordinaire has indeed grown up, filled out, ditched his glasses and even lost his freckles! He's always been gaga for Jessica, and now she's actually happy to have him around. He appears to be her latest boytoy, at least for this book, and my classic SVH canon mind just cannot wrap around this LOL.

( This is, of course, the least ridiculous thing about this book, which is basically SVU meets every Dracula derivative ever. )

Does this book many any sense? No. Is it fun? Yes. It was a great way to start this year's nostalgia re-readation, and I'm looking forward to the next!

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!fandom: sweet valley

Happy (belated) birthday! impy!

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon, Part II

The second part of this year's re-readathon will be the ultimate SVH re-read: The six-part "Evil Twin" miniseries, aka The Greatest Mini Series of All Time(TM). This is the bridge from classic SVH canon to the three-book mini arcs, and the place where SVH loses all evidence of innocence. They are going dark, and they are going fast, with the introduction of perhaps the greatest side character ever: Margo.

This will be the first time I've re-read this series in at least 15 years, and I'm looking forward to it! We're going all in: from the opening magna edition to the sequel book, where things go from crazy to insane in 10 seconds flat.

Here's the schedule:

Week of 11/05/23: SVH Magna Edition: A Night to Remember
Week of 11/12/23: SVH #95 The Morning After
Week of 11/19/23: SVH #96: The Arrest
Week of 11/26/23: SVH #97: The Verdict
Week of 12/03/23: SVH #98: The Wedding
Week of 12/10/23: SVH #99: Beware the Baby-sitter
Week of 12/17/23: SVH #100: The Evil Twin
Week of 12/24/23: SVH Magna Edition: Return of the Evil Twin

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH Magna Edition #6: Return of the Evil Twin

Screams in the night...

Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield have no idea that their world is about to be turned upside down - again. Last Christmas, Margo - a girl who looked, talked, and dressed exactly like Jessica and Elizabeth - arrived in Sweet Valley to take what she considered her rightful place in the Wakefield home. On a dark winter's night, Margo fell to a violent death, and the Wakefields thought their nightmare was over.

But they didn't know about Nora, Margo's own twin sister. Nora, separated from Margo at birth, is outraged when she discovers that the sister she'd never known is dead...and that California's picture-perfect twins are to blame. Now Nora wants revenge - and she's capable of evil beyond anything Margo could have ever dreamed.

Ah, Return of the Evil Twin, one of the terribad books that followed TGMOAT, and the only one that ever tries to actually top it. The sad thing is, the first half of the book is quite compellingly written - its the second half where shit just goes completely OTT.

( The blurb is a complete lie. I hate it when that happens. )

I can't believe Frannie & co had the audacity to even try to revive the Evil Twin storyline in the first place, but to do it and then botch the execution so completely (especially after a promising start) is just mind-boggling. If TGMOAT and the preceding 20 books hadn't convinced you that SVH jumped the shark in 1993, surely this book does. The fact that it's immediately followed by the miniseries where Jessica dumps Ken is just icing on the shittastic cake.

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #100: The Evil Twin

Will Margo win the final battle?

Margo's monstrous plan is complete.

She came to Sweet Valley to find a new life, and discovered identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield and their "perfect" family. If only Margo can get rid of one of them, she can take her rightful place in the Wakefield home.

Now the moment Margo has been waiting for has arrived. The twins aren't speaking to each other. Sweet Valley is in chaos. Mr and Mrs Wakefield are out of town. Margo has just enough time to do what she needs to do.

Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield are in mortal danger...

All miniseries long, I've been waiting for the Christmas season to hit, and boom! Here it is. Chapter one, the twins are dressing for their last day of classes before the winter break. They are both musing over the disaster that was the Jungle Prom, Sam's death, and their estrangement ever since. Both twins have premonitions that something bad is going to happen, but they are so mired in their anger and sadness that they can't really tell if its a true feeling or not.

( Margo puts her money where her mouth is, and finally takes action )

But, this is rightly considered the best book of the entire SVH series, and it definitely holds up as such. There was no going back to the slim, white-spined, early canon series after this, and indeed, SVH quickly goes off the rails in increasingly dramatic and idiotic ways, but damn. What a helluva way to celebrate reaching a milestone series number!

Unfortunately, one of the terribad books that follows this is an actual sequel to the Evil Twin, which is so OTT that I remember being angry that they even attempted to pull it off. Hopefully I will find it less anger-inducing this time around, as we close out our re-read (and this year)!

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #99: Beware the Baby-sitter

Margo makes her move...

Margo is making herself right at home in Sweet Valley, setting her evil scheme in motion. She's gotten a job at a day-care center, and is busy perfecting her imitation of identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield. She's even fooled Todd Wilkins and Mrs. Wakefield into thinking she's Elizabeth. Now it's only a matter of time before Margo takes over Elizabeth's life for good.

Meanwhile, Winston Egbert was baby-sitting for a neighbor. Now the neighbor has disappeared. What's Winston going to do with a baby?

The penultimate book in TGMOAT finds Margo coming completely unhinged, and has a rather irritating subplot of Wacky Baby-sitting Hijinks with a side order of All Adults are Morons, apparently. I think this is the weakest book in the miniseries; maybe this is colored by my adoration of the previous book.

( Disappointment, let me show you some )

The setup for The Evil Twin is there, but this was a rather painful way to get to it. I've been a bit disappointed by how sloppy Margo has gotten in this book (or maybe I'm just disappointed with myself for forgetting it? LOL), so I'm hoping #100 is as good as I remember it to be. This miniseries started off strongly, and I'm ready for it to finish the same way.

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #98: The Wedding

Can romance save Sweet Valley?

Lila Fowler finally has the family that she always wanted: a father and a mother who love her. And she can tell that despite their years apart, her parents still love each other. Now all Lila wants is to get them back together - and what Lila wants, Lila gets!

Todd Wilkins can't keep pretending he's interested in Jessica Wakefield - especially when he's still in love with Elizabeth. But can Elizabeth ever forgive his betrayal?

...and Margo has seen the Wakefield twins - and the new life that could be hers. The only thing standing between Margo and her dream is murder!

This has always been my favorite book of this miniseries, and I suppose it still is. It holds up beautifully and serves as a good bridge between the previous angst-driven books and the upcoming showdown in #100.

( Parent Trap, Sweet Valley edition )

Per the timeline of this book, two months have passed since Grace's return to Sweet Valley. Everything's moving awfully quickly, and I don't even think this puts us into the summer season yet (everyone's still in school), but somehow in two books' time we'll be at Christmas. My, how time flies.

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #97: The Verdict

Innocent until proven guilty...

The verdict isn't in yet on Elizabeth Wakefield. But her twin sister, Jessica, has already convicted her and won't even talk to Elizabeth. Now that Jessica has Todd, will life ever be the same for Elizabeth?

Pamela has transferred to Sweet Valley High, to be closer to Bruce Patman, the boy she really loves. But Bruce still won't look at her. Pamela's made a final break with her past - but is it enough?

Between building a relationship with his new female roommate, Billie, and being there for his troubled family, Steven Wakefield is completely worn out. It's clear that he can't do both - what will he do?

...Margo has arrived in Sweet Valley, and is ready to take over her new life - even if it belongs to someone else!

We've had another ghostwriter switch, possibly back to the original one, because events have changed yet again - not the least of which is that the Brazil trip, the original prize for the Prom Queen, has suddenly been mentioned again. More storylines are also wrapping up, which is a good thing because the Wakefield family drama is starting to overtake everything.

( Sweet Valley's wheels of justice move at comically warp speed )

Aside from the ridiculousness of Liz's trial, this was a pretty solid read; I liked it better than The Arrest and was content to not have a Wacky Hijinks subplot going on in an attempt to lighten the mood. If it wasn't for the inconsistencies with the story that make it obvious there's more than one hand stirring this pot, it would be a solid five stars. Unfortunately, it's just a little more sloppy than I remember.

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #96: The Arrest

Will Elizabeth ever regain her self-respect?

Elizabeth Wakefield has been arrested - and her twin, Jessica, has finally stolen Elizabeth's boyfriend, Todd. The twins have drifted further apart than ever before - is there any hope of reunion now?

Nicholas Morrow agrees to appear on the hot new dating show, Hunks. After two ridiculous dates, Nicholas is ready to give up on the idea of true love forever. But he still has one more date to go...

Lila Fowler's mother has returned to Sweet Valley just when he daughter needs her the most. But how can she explain why she abandoned Lila? Can Lila learn to love the woman who left her all those years ago?

...and Margo continues towards Sweet Valley - leaving a wake of destruction!

Well, we have our first signs that the ghostie who wrote this book is not the same as the previous one. The timeline has magically constricted - instead of nearly a month passing at the start of this one, only a week has passed. In that time, not only has Sam been buried, the Jeep has also been repaired. Apparently after a total, it looks brand new. Er, yeah, okay then.

( The cover is a lie )

It occurs to me as I read this that the reason that I likely forgot about the big Brazil trip prize for Prom Queen is that it's never mentioned again after A Night to Remember. I get that there's collective chaos and unreality settling in over Sweet Valley, but if Jessica had been forced to follow through with the trip and ambassadorship for Environmental Awareness, that would've been more than enough to keep her mind off her guilt for being the cause of Sam's death, and it would've given her something to insulate her from her feels of loss and betrayal when her parents and brother start rallying to Liz's defense. But nope, instead we have to let those dark feelings fester and Jessica turns her mind to revenge by pulling Todd away . The wedge has to be driven so completely between the twins to allow for the showdown with Margo in 3 books' time. It's a shame, really, that none of the ghosties were able to put a line under the whole Brazil trip aspect of A Night to Remember, instead letting that plot thread hang out there.

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #95: The Morning After

Could the twins be split forever?

A terrible accident has changed the Wakefields' lives forever. Will Jessica Wakefield ever come to terms with the tragedy?

Brice Patman has finally opened his heart to Pamela - but will he be able to ignore the malicious gossip about her wild past?

When all of Sweet Valley finds out that Lila Fowler has lied about her guidance counselor, her life goes into a tailspin. Finally, Lila's desperate father brings home someone special to help Lila - the mother she never knew! But is it too little, too late?

...and three thousand miles away, a troubled young woman heads west - on a journey that will change Sweet Valley forever!

What I remember most about this book: being SUPER EXCITED to finally meet Lila's mother! In fact, I'm pretty sure that the first SVH book I bought after I gave away my original collection was #98, but we'll get to that when we get to that.

First of all, let me say that I'm still pretty damned impressed with the writing in this book. It is just as strong as A Night to Remember, which is no small feat, because that book was pretty impressive on its own and hard to follow up. But this one picks up right where the last one left off, ( even if the title is a complete and utter misnomer )

That's a lot of plot to pack into 3 1/2 weeks of time and a 215 page book. All of the plot strands are given equal time in the forefront, and it's just really nicely done. Whoever planned this series really put some thought into it, which is perhaps why it is TGMOAT =)

Current Mood: pleased

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH Magna Edition #3: A Night to Remember

After tonight, nothing will ever be the same in Sweet Valley...

Identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield have worked together to create the most perfect prom Sweet Valley has ever seen - but when a jealous conflict turns deadly, the twins' lives are changed forever!

Since the death of his girlfriend, Regina Morrow, wealthy Bruce Patman has kept his heart closed to love. Then a mysterious girl steps into his life, and Bruce must decide if it's worth the pain to love again.

When Lila Fowler thinks her guidance counselor is interested in more than her schoolwork, she puts his career and reputation on the line.

Will the truth come out before disaster strikes and changes the lives of everyone in Sweet Valley forever?

This year,

impy and I decided to prolong our annual nostalgia re-readathon beyond Halloween. We chose to re-read The Evil Twin storyline from SVH, also known as THE GREATEST MINISERIES OF ALL TIME (TGMOAT). This is the arc that bridged the gap between classic SVH canon (books #1-94) and the two-to-six book self-contained mini arcs hereafter, to the end of the original series.

I remember very vividly reading this miniseries when it was originally released in 1993, and just how crazy it was. This was no ordinary (albeit escapist) storyline in SVH. ( This was the jump-the-shark, bat-shit, bananapants crazy arc that left behind any idea of innocence or realism in the Sweet Valley universe )

As much as I love the Evil Twin arc, I hate that it starts with Sam's death. He deserved better, and even preteen me thirty years ago felt this way. So the tagline for TGMOAT? JUSTICE FOR SAM!

Current Mood: excited

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon, Part I

Its officially October! To honor the season (and get into the spirit of things),

impy & I are doing our third (?) nostalgia re-readathon. We usually dip into Sweet Valley series for this, and the last couple of years we've also been reading one book from Christopher Pike's The Last Vampire miniseries.

This year we are reading the SVH "Horror" miniseries (#104-#106) and the SVU Super Thriller The House of Death along with The Last Vampire #3. I'm super stoked and can't wait to start!!

In an attempt to start using DW again (especially now that Twitter has disappeared and my SM fix is impossible to get via my phone anymore), I will be posting my reviews of the books here, along with the covers and back summaries.

This year's re-readathon is actually going to be a two-parter - we're doing Halloween AND Christmas, which will include my first re-read of the GREATEST MINISERIES OF ALL TIME for the first time in at least 15 years. But let's concentrate of the Halloween part first. Here's the schedule:

Week of 10/01/23: SVH #104 Love and Death in London
Week of 10/08/23: SVH #105 A Date with a Werewolf
Week of 10/15/23: SVH #106 Beware the Wolfman
Week of 10/22/23: SVU Super Thriller #4 The House of Death
Week of 10/29/23: The Last Vampire #3 Red Dice

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVU Thriller #4: The House of Death

When a deadly earthquake hits Sweet Valley University...

Lila Fowler is trapped in a collapsed building. When she emerges from a coma, will a brilliant young psychiatrist help her build a new life - or turn her dreams to rubble?

Porter Davis is thrilled to have Lila under his spell. And the more deeply he controls her mind, the more villainous his plans for her become.

Bruce Patman knows Porter Davis is bad news, but Lila refuses to heed Bruce's warnings. Can Bruce make Lila see through Porter's perfect facade before its too late?

Jessica Wakefield feels bad that Tom Watts lost his dorm room in the earthquake - but that doesn't mean she wants him for a roommate. Will Jessica make Elizabeth choose between her boyfriend and her twin sister?

After the turgid SVH "Horror" miniseries, I am grateful to moving on to SVU in this year's nostalgia re-readathon. SVU is where my OTP ship Bruce/Lila sails freely, including in this Super Thriller, so I was 1000% on board to visit this.

( The latest SV earthquake has shattering consequences for our beloved teens )

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #106: Beware the Wolfman

A savage werewolf is loose in London, and identical twins Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield could be its next targets. On assignment for the London Journal, the twins are on the trail of the most deadly killer since Jack the Ripper. When he ransacks their room and leaves telltale claw marks, the twins know they must capture the maniac before he captures - and kills - them. Terrified, they follow the villain's trail, not suspecting that it's part of his deadly plot to lead them straight into his lair.

Luke, the quiet poet who has won Elizabeth's heart, has armed the twins with anti-werewolf potions and amulets. But when the moon is full, not even the strongest spell can protect them against the awesome powers of this legendary beast. Are Jessica and Elizabeth fated to die in London?

( I love it when Jessica is a better journalist than Elizabeth )

Current Mood: aggravated

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #105: A Date with a Werewolf

Is Jessica Wakefield in love with a werewolf? Her identical twin, Elizabeth, can't shake the feeling that Jessica's new boyfriend, Lord Robert Pembroke, is not what he seems. Could he be the vicious killer the twins have been pursuing on assignment for the London Journal? Luke, Elizabeth's English love, confirms her suspicions that Jessica is in terrible jeopardy.

Meanwhile Elizabeth's friend Lina Smith is in danger of losing the only boy she's ever loved. David knows that Lina is hiding something from him, and Lina's sure that when he discovers her secret, he'll never speak to her again. Desperate, Lina turns to Elizabeth. Can Elizabeth salvage Lina's relationship and save Jessica from a wolfman, too?

( In which Elizabeth Wakefield is an insufferable idiot )

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2023 Nostalgia Re-readathon | SVH #104: Love and Death in London

Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield are looking for trouble. Working as summer interns assigned the Scotland Yard beat for the London Journal, they're bored with all the petty cases they've been given. When a series of grisly murders breaks out, they decide to do some sleuthing on their own.

Elizabeth and Jessica discover that the murder victims look as if they've been attacked by a wild animal. Who - or what? - could have committed such a beastly crime? The detectives are baffled, but the twins, led by Like, the quiet boy who is quickly finding a place in Elizabeth's heart, have their own suspicions. Will they find the murderer, before he - or it - finds them?

( Hot fun in the summertime )