Customer Reviews

Pearl in the Mist

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Pearl in the Mist," the second book in the Landry family series, is a lot like "Dark Angel" from the Casteel series. In this book, 17-year-old Ruby Landry/Dumas is sent to an all girls private boarding school (Greenwood) in Baton Rouge with her recently crippled twin sister, Gisselle Dumas. As usual, Ruby is mistreated by authority figures, such as the headmistress, Mrs. Ironwood, who's in cahoots with Ruby's mean-spirited stepmother, Daphne. Ruby is also regarded as her sister's keeper and punished for the things Gisselle does. While Gisselle is the spoiled, mean twin, I liked her at times more than Ruby in this book. She was outspoken and funny for the most part, though she oftentimes went overboard to get attention, like how she humiliates one of Ruby's biracial friends at a dance.

Ruby, once again, isn't short for romance in this book, even while at an all girls school. She meets a 30-year-old blind pianist (Louis Turbull), who is the grandson of one of the school's matriarchs. And on the side is Gisselle's ex/Ruby's current boyfriend, Beau Andreas, with martyr-like Paul Tate lurking somewhere in the background until later in this book/series.

Though Ruby has her peaks at Greenwood--meeting Louis, perfecting her painting, and making friends with a quadroon, Abby Tyler--she is devastated when her father dies of a heart attack, leaving her and Gisselle in the bitter hands of their stepmother. This little drama continues in the next book, "All That Glitters," and wraps up in the final two: "Hidden Jewel" and "Tarnished Gold." While the Landry series isn't my favorite, it's still one of the ghostwriter's (Andrew Niederman) better series and worth reading if you're a V. C. Andrews fan.

This is the VC Andrews book I read ever and at the time I didn't even know the woman or that she was dead. This was a very good book taking place in New Orleans during the early to mid 60s. The characters are unforgettable and adults can get into the VC Andrews earlier books as oppose to the later teeny bopper ones that just have her name on the book. Good for Ruby for having to put up with sister Giselle and stepmom Daphne after the father is dead. Kind of reminds you of Cinderella but with a sick twist. Ruby also runs away back to her hometown to have her baby and part of that has to do with the title of the book. That was wimpy of Beau to run off after Ruby gets pregnant by him but he makes up for it in the later books. The ghostwriter did a very good job with this novel with the help of VC Andrews touch.

This book is all about one who has to endure a lot over many changes that takes her away from the little that she had. Her love, her father, her uncle and her new home that she loved. With her sister being as cruel it didnt make it any easier. This book just says that you have to wait and be patient. Though it may be fustrating more then half the times you have to see it throught. Dont run away, face it! If you read this book you will see that there are many fights fought by us everyday. Its up to us to make tommorow better then yesterday and today. Read it and you'll see that patience is a virtue that everyone dosent want but in the end you'll see that you have gone far. Just like she did. It might not be what and how you wanted it. The main thing is to make the best of it and dont lose hope.

This is a sleazy series, ghostwritten (obviously, since Andrews died sometime during the 1980s), that recycles all the traumatic events in her early books into a new package with yet another sweet but hapless little girl on the cover. The writing is bad, the characters are thinly drawn, and the story is just a bastardized version of the real Andrews' novels. I thought the market for the "girl who is partially orphaned, then betrayed by adoptive parents, then falls in forbidden incestuous love with some relative, and then is raped by some other relative"-story was called the porn industry. I can't believe this is actually becoming like a genre unto itself. How totally shady!

I think this is the greatest book, I'm about to finish the following one (All that Glitters), and it's unbelievable the way you get into the book...I mean, isn't it amazing the feeling you get when someone does someone really mean to Ruby? After all she's gone through, doesn't the girl deserve any happiness at all?
After she's faced all those things, like her grandmere's death,a crippled sister and all the trouble with her Grandpere back at the bayou, now she has to live in Greenwood, where "the Iron Lady" hates her because of Daphne, and where she has to carry with all the responsabilities. And like this weren't enough, in the only happy moment of the novel (when she gets together with Beau for Christmas) she get's pregnant!
Besides, Beau is taken far away, her father is dead, and she's left in Daphne's hands....could anything be worse? Yes...having a sister like Gisselle, who doesn't want to see you happy...
At least, at the end she get's a chance to go back to the bayou (where her Granpere dies) and have her baby girl "Pearl" with Paul's love and support. Even though it isn't a happy ending, it's a very realistic and exciting one. It sure left me anxious to read the next book!

I could relate to what Ruby went through while she was at boarding school. During my last year in college I had problems with my peers. Without taking my side of the story into consideration, the dean of students booted me out of the residence halls. He said I should just "bag it" if I was upset with anybody at all. He even said that nobody would want to be friends with me if I couldn't control my emotions. It's hard for anybody to control how he or she feels if he or she is being disliked without a just cause. I didn't deserve to be snubbed at all. This novel was the very first VC Andrews book I read. Ever since I could relate to the feeling of Ruby and the main characters of the novels I have been attached to the VC novels.

This wasn't my favorite of the series but the Landry series is my all time favorite so I'm just happy to have this book because of it being part of that series.
Ruby has escaped from a life of poverty fleeing to her father's New Orlean's Mansion to escape her drunken boar of a grandfather and a shocking secret of her mother's that destroyed the sweet spring time love she knew with Paul Tate.
Ruby and her warped mirror image, her twin, Gisselle are being sent to a private school by her father and Daphne, her father's lovely but cruel wife who looks at Ruby with eyes like daggers. Ruby is relieved to escape from the dark presence of Daphne who does nothing to hide her poisonious hate towards Ruby. In the school can Ruby find no refuge though. The dragonish head misteress knowing of her Cajun upbringing watches Ruby with a steely gaze waiting for Ruby to make one little mistake and Gisselle is up to mischief, looking for anyway to escape the rigid girl's school, even if it means framing Ruby for the crimes she herself commited....
Ruby is trapped. Can a visit from lover boy, Beau raise her spirits? Or will Beau's visit only unleash a Pandora's box of trouble that will end this couple's carefree frolicking and cause Ruby to make a decision that will forever change her life? When a Pearl in the mist waits for her what will she choose?

I personally believe that the Landry series is the best the V.C. Andrews ghostwriter has done. Everything has been downhill from there.
This book is a quick, easy read meant for pure enjoyment and nothing more. I found it easy to lose myself in Ruby's tales of all she went through at the hands of her sister and every other cronie in the school. With a V.C. Andrews book, that's all I can ask for!
I do feel that Ruby's character was rather weak. I would have liked to read about her standing up for herself more than she did. If I had a sister like Gisselle, you better believe I wouldn't be such a wimp.
This book is perfect for a quick, brainless summertime read!

Do they honestly expect us to believe that Gisselle would just magically overcome her paralysis? That is THE stupidest thing I've ever heard. Even if she COULD overcome it, it would take therapy and exercise, not just farting around in her room and lifting herself out of her wheelchair. Anyone else notice this?

Pearl in the Mist was the best book that i have read my V.C Andrews. I tells the story of a young girl, Ruby that was brought into a life that she knew nothing about. With all the lies that she had to endure, she was able to fall in love. Who knew that he love for Beau would take her for a emotional ride. After going though life Ruby loses the two things that meant the most to her. Beau and her father. She leaves the life that she had been brought in to and went back to the life that she knew before. There she finds a lost love and a lost brother. IF you like a book that is full of surprises and suspence, i highly recomened this book. As well as the other books in this series.