My Sweet Audrina (1982)

My Sweet Audrina is a 1982 novel by V. C. Andrews. It was the only stand-alone novel published during Andrews' lifetime and was a number-one best-selling novel in North America. The story takes place in the Mid-Atlantic United States during the 1960s and 1970s. The story features diverse subjects, such as brittle bone disease, rape, post traumatic stress disorder and diabetes, in the haunting setting of a Victorian-era mansion near the fictitious River Lyle.

Plot

Audrina Adare claims she is seven years old when the novel begins, although it is later revealed that her memory is unreliable. Audrina lives at Whitefern, a Victorian-era mansion, with her father Damian, her mother Lucietta, her aunt Ellsbeth and her cousin Vera. The family takes special care to keep Audrina unaware of precise dates, including that of her own birthday—even though Audrina knows that she was born on September 9, she is frequently confused about the exact passage of time, leading Vera to mock her for being insane. Audrina's father, however, is convinced that Audrina "walks in her own time space".

Nine years before Audrina was born, her elder sister—also named Audrina and also born on September 9—was raped and murdered in the woods on her ninth birthday. Damian tells her stories about his "first and best Audrina" and convinces the younger Audrina that, by a process of self-hypnosis (which includes going into the first Audrina's old bedroom and rocking in her rocking chair) she can gain all of her memories and become just as beloved and special as the original Audrina, which is what she wants more than anything else in the world.

Audrina lives in virtual isolation, her only real contact with the outside world being her older cousin, Vera, who despises her. Vera claims that Audrina stole her place in Damian's affection and that the "second and worst" Audrina will never be as special as the first and best. Vera, a habitual liar and borderline nymphomaniac, proves early on that she will stop at nothing to steal and destroy everything that Audrina loves. Audrina, conversely, is haunted by dreams of her dead sister's rape and is terrified of sex. Vera has very brittle bones that break easily, and she enjoys playing the convalescent to get Damien's attention or sympathy. She takes great pleasure in taunting Audrina and often claims that she is more loved by Damien than Audrina is.

When she is aged seven, Audrina meets Arden Lowe and his mother Billie, a former ice skater who is now a double amputee. Billie and Arden have moved into the groundkeeper's cottage in the woods where the first Audrina died. Although she fears the woods, Audrina is willing to brave them to see Billie and Arden, and gradually, Damian consents to these visits. Meanwhile, Lucietta is pregnant again. The family calls Mrs. Allismore, a psychic, to come and predict the baby's gender. They are horrified when she predicts the child is neither male nor female, although Vera calmly states that it is fitting that a new "freak" would join the family. On Audrina's ninth birthday, Lucietta goes into early labor and dies in childbirth. The baby is a girl named Sylvia.

Lucietta was a great pianist, so to keep her memory alive Audrina takes piano lessons with Vera at the home of Lamar Rensdale. More than two years after her birth, Sylvia finally comes home from the hospital, and it is revealed that she is mentally challenged. Audrina is told by her father to take care of Sylvia. Audrina complains to her piano teacher about not being allowed to go to school; he intervenes and she is finally allowed to attend, with Ellsbeth begrudgingly agreeing to care for Sylvia.

A few years later, Audrina discovers that Lamar and Vera are intimately involved, and Vera is pregnant. When Vera finds out that Audrina knows about the affair, she angrily confronts and fights with her, resulting in Vera suffering a miscarriage. The next day, Vera leaves town with Lamar, leaving a note claiming that she is actually Audrina's paternal half-sister due to an affair between Ellsbeth and Damian before he met Lucietta. Damian does not deny it and is relieved that Vera has left. Audrina is upset he acted so badly towards his own daughter, but Damian says Vera hates them all and would destroy them, given the chance. Ellsbeth agrees.

Shortly after she turns eighteen, Audrina discovers that Damian and Ellsbeth are lovers again. However, Ellsbeth threatens to leave Damian because he will not let her help Vera, who is alone after Lamar committed suicide. She and Damian seem to have resolved things, but the next morning, Ellsbeth is found dead from a mysterious fall down the stairs. In the confusion following this death, Audrina elopes with Arden, hoping to escape her controlling father, and takes Sylvia with her. Because she is not prepared for sexual intimacy, however, her wedding night is disastrous.

When the newlyweds return from their honeymoon, they find that Damian has won over Arden's mother and invited her to live with them at Whitefern. He offers Arden a job at his company since Arden was unable to find work. Audrina is upset at how Damian manipulates events to keep control over her life, and disappointed that Billie has been tricked into believing he is wonderful and kind. She wants Billie and Arden to be happy, however, so she tries to live peacefully with everyone. Things seem okay until Vera returns. Damian orders her to leave, but Billie is heart-broken by his cold-heartedness and convinces him to let Vera stay. Soon after, Vera tries to seduce Arden.