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Birdlane Island: A Novel
From the #1
New York Times
bestselling author of the Flowers in the Attic and Landry series—now popular Lifetime
movies—an evocative and tender tale of star-crossed lovers on an isolated island.
Off the coast of Maine, on an island shaped like a seagull in flight, shrouded by mists off the bay, lives a novelist Jason Lorraine and his teenage daughter Lisa. They live a simple life, largely cut off from the mainland, and Lisa’s weak health poses a frequent concern.
After the sudden and untimely death of Lisa’s mother, Jason becomes even more reclusive and protective. Lisa is forbidden to see Jamie, the charming fisherman’s son who has quickly become her closest confidante in her grief. The star-crossed lovers steal time with one another, but fate intervenes, and they may never find a happy ending. A brooding artist from out of town, Kyle, arrives and brings more color to Lisa’s world. As Lisa fights for love, independence, and agency, will her beloved island become her sanctuary or her prison?
Off the coast of Maine, on an island shaped like a seagull in flight, shrouded by mists off the bay, lives a novelist Jason Lorraine and his teenage daughter Lisa. They live a simple life, largely cut off from the mainland, and Lisa’s weak health poses a frequent concern.
After the sudden and untimely death of Lisa’s mother, Jason becomes even more reclusive and protective. Lisa is forbidden to see Jamie, the charming fisherman’s son who has quickly become her closest confidante in her grief. The star-crossed lovers steal time with one another, but fate intervenes, and they may never find a happy ending. A brooding artist from out of town, Kyle, arrives and brings more color to Lisa’s world. As Lisa fights for love, independence, and agency, will her beloved island become her sanctuary or her prison?
- GenresFiction
304 pages, Paperback
Published October 28, 2025
23 people are currently reading
170 people want to read
About the author
V.C. Andrews
370 books9,091 followersBooks published under the following names - Virginia Andrews, V. Andrews, Virginia C. Andrews & V.C. Endrius. Books since her death ghost written by Andrew Neiderman, but still attributed to the V.C. Andrews name
Virginia Cleo Andrews (born Cleo Virginia Andrews) was born June 6, 1923 in Portsmouth, Virginia. The youngest child and the only daughter of William Henry Andrews, a career navy man who opened a tool-and-die business after retirement, and Lillian Lilnora Parker Andrews, a telephone operator. She spent her happy childhood years in Portsmouth, Virginia, living briefly in Rochester, New York. The Andrews family returned to Portsmouth while Virginia was in high school.
While a teenager, Virginia suffered a tragic accident, falling down the stairs at her school and incurred severe back injuries. Arthritis and a failed spinal surgical procedure forced her to spend most of her life on crutches or in a wheelchair.
Virginia excelled in school and, at fifteen, won a scholarship for writing a parody of Tennyson's Idylls of the King. She proudly earned her diploma from Woodrow Wilson High School in Portsmouth. After graduation, she nurtured her artistic talent by completing a four-year correspondence art course while living at home with her family.
After William Andrews died in the late 1960s, Virginia helped to support herself and her mother through her extremely successful career as a commercial artist, portrait painter, and fashion illustrator.
Frustrated with the lack of creative satisfaction that her work provided, Virginia sought creative release through writing, which she did in secret. In 1972, she completed her first novel, The Gods of the Green Mountain [sic], a science-fantasy story. It was never published. Between 1972 and 1979, she wrote nine novels and twenty short stories, of which only one was published. "I Slept with My Uncle on My Wedding Night", a short fiction piece, was published in a pulp confession magazine.
Promise gleamed over the horizon for Virginia when she submitted a 290,000-word novel, The Obsessed, to a publishing company. She was told that the story had potential, but needed to be trimmed and spiced up a bit. She drafted a new outline in a single night and added "unspeakable things my mother didn't want me to write about." The ninety-eight-page revision was re-titled Flowers in the Attic and she was paid a $7,500 advance. Her new-generation Gothic novel reached the bestseller lists a mere two weeks after its 1979 paperback publication by Pocket Books.
Petals on the Wind, her sequel to Flowers, was published the next year, earning Virginia a $35,000 advance. The second book remained on the New York Times bestseller list for an unbelievable nineteen weeks (Flowers also returned to the list). These first two novels alone sold over seven million copies in only two years. The third novel of the Dollanganger series, If There Be Thorns, was released in 1981, bringing Virginia a $75,000 advance. It reached No. 2 on many bestseller lists within its first two weeks.
Taking a break from the chronicles of Chris and Cathy Dollanganger, Virginia published her one, and only, stand-alone novel, My Sweet Audrina, in 1982. The book welcomed an immediate success, topping the sales figures of her previous novels. Two years later, a fourth Dollanganger novel was released, Seeds of Yesterday. According to the New York Times, Seeds was the best-selling fiction paperback novel of 1984. Also in 1984, V.C. Andrews was named "Professional Woman of the Year" by the city of Norfolk, Virginia.
Upon Andrews's death in 1986, two final novels—Garden of Shadows and Fallen Hearts—were published. These two novels are considered the last to bear the "V.C. Andrews" name and to be almost completely written by
Virginia Cleo Andrews (born Cleo Virginia Andrews) was born June 6, 1923 in Portsmouth, Virginia. The youngest child and the only daughter of William Henry Andrews, a career navy man who opened a tool-and-die business after retirement, and Lillian Lilnora Parker Andrews, a telephone operator. She spent her happy childhood years in Portsmouth, Virginia, living briefly in Rochester, New York. The Andrews family returned to Portsmouth while Virginia was in high school.
While a teenager, Virginia suffered a tragic accident, falling down the stairs at her school and incurred severe back injuries. Arthritis and a failed spinal surgical procedure forced her to spend most of her life on crutches or in a wheelchair.
Virginia excelled in school and, at fifteen, won a scholarship for writing a parody of Tennyson's Idylls of the King. She proudly earned her diploma from Woodrow Wilson High School in Portsmouth. After graduation, she nurtured her artistic talent by completing a four-year correspondence art course while living at home with her family.
After William Andrews died in the late 1960s, Virginia helped to support herself and her mother through her extremely successful career as a commercial artist, portrait painter, and fashion illustrator.
Frustrated with the lack of creative satisfaction that her work provided, Virginia sought creative release through writing, which she did in secret. In 1972, she completed her first novel, The Gods of the Green Mountain [sic], a science-fantasy story. It was never published. Between 1972 and 1979, she wrote nine novels and twenty short stories, of which only one was published. "I Slept with My Uncle on My Wedding Night", a short fiction piece, was published in a pulp confession magazine.
Promise gleamed over the horizon for Virginia when she submitted a 290,000-word novel, The Obsessed, to a publishing company. She was told that the story had potential, but needed to be trimmed and spiced up a bit. She drafted a new outline in a single night and added "unspeakable things my mother didn't want me to write about." The ninety-eight-page revision was re-titled Flowers in the Attic and she was paid a $7,500 advance. Her new-generation Gothic novel reached the bestseller lists a mere two weeks after its 1979 paperback publication by Pocket Books.
Petals on the Wind, her sequel to Flowers, was published the next year, earning Virginia a $35,000 advance. The second book remained on the New York Times bestseller list for an unbelievable nineteen weeks (Flowers also returned to the list). These first two novels alone sold over seven million copies in only two years. The third novel of the Dollanganger series, If There Be Thorns, was released in 1981, bringing Virginia a $75,000 advance. It reached No. 2 on many bestseller lists within its first two weeks.
Taking a break from the chronicles of Chris and Cathy Dollanganger, Virginia published her one, and only, stand-alone novel, My Sweet Audrina, in 1982. The book welcomed an immediate success, topping the sales figures of her previous novels. Two years later, a fourth Dollanganger novel was released, Seeds of Yesterday. According to the New York Times, Seeds was the best-selling fiction paperback novel of 1984. Also in 1984, V.C. Andrews was named "Professional Woman of the Year" by the city of Norfolk, Virginia.
Upon Andrews's death in 1986, two final novels—Garden of Shadows and Fallen Hearts—were published. These two novels are considered the last to bear the "V.C. Andrews" name and to be almost completely written by
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 14, 2025
I absolutely loved this book. To me it’s not the normal VC Andrews book that I’ve read in the past. It was beautifully written as ever, but it told a much more subdued story about a crappy dad and a love on an island. It’s so hard to put this review into words because this book is gripping but not in a horror sense as there is no horror or thrills, but in a way that you are invested in the the details of Lisa’s life. I loved it!
November 4, 2025
elp I was a huge fan of VC Andrew's back in the day, so i was curious to see what they would be publishing under her ame years after her death. it definitely doesnt measure up. But at the same time. it's not completely off course for what rould be written It just doesnit give the same gothic kinda vibe. If youre looking for loads of drama and super cringe arental content with repressed teen girls who rebel by making weird choices in their partners, And there's the family business which even now Im not 100 percent sure what it is but I know it's something to do with the ocean because it had ships at least I think.
Maybe it was just too deep for my simple mind. There's lots of metaphors to try and interpret and understand and maybe that's what tured me off. I just want to escape and not do homework Thanks to Gallery Books and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review
Maybe it was just too deep for my simple mind. There's lots of metaphors to try and interpret and understand and maybe that's what tured me off. I just want to escape and not do homework Thanks to Gallery Books and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange for my review
October 13, 2025
Before we dive into the melodramatic mist-drenched mess of Birdlane Island, let’s talk about the very real, very weird publishing séance that is the "V.C. Andrews" brand. Because yes, V.C. Andrews has been dead since 1986. And yet! She has released over 80 books posthumously. Which is either a miracle or the longest-running literary cosplay in modern publishing.
The man behind the curtain? Andrew Neiderman. A real-life horror novelist who got hired by Andrews’ estate to take over after her death. Like a gothic ghostwriter slash literary shapeshifter. Yes, ghostwriter is the right term, but Neiderman is less “taking dictation from the beyond” and more “bingeing soap operas and sprinkling in incest vibes.” He’s been doing this for nearly four decades. At this point he’s written way more "V.C. Andrews" than V.C. Andrews ever did. The man is basically method acting a dead author. Honestly? Respect.
Now, Birdlane Island is the latest offering from the undead factory, and it’s giving classic Andrews ingredients: tragic girls, controlling men, forbidden love, and an isolated setting with heavy fog and heavier metaphor. But instead of attic siblings or cursed bayou bloodlines, we get Lisa, a sheltered teenager with a weak heart, a protective (read: suffocating) novelist dad, and a ghost of a dead mom haunting everyone’s grief and decision-making.
This island? Literally shaped like a seagull, which feels like a weird flex, but go off. Lisa’s life is cottagecore if the cottage was emotionally stunted and full of repressed feelings. Her only real lifeline is Jamie, a sweet fisherman’s son who’s got total “will die tragically at sea” energy. Naturally, Dad hates him. Naturally, they sneak around anyway. And naturally, that blows up in a way that has Neiderman slash Andrews written all over it in glittery trauma cursive.
Enter Kyle, the brooding out-of-towner with just enough emotional damage to be YA catnip and just enough age ambiguity to make me nervous. He’s painting things. He’s saying cryptic things. He’s probably a metaphor. And Lisa, who has the emotional experience of a Regency debutante and the medical history of a Victorian invalid, is suddenly balancing teen lust, suffocating grief, and the slow realization that her island paradise might actually be a prison wrapped in sea fog.
Now look. If you’re expecting narrative coherence or character logic, you might want to exit the island now. But if you’re here for overwrought drama, deeply weird parental energy, and emotionally repressed girls learning to rebel by making chaotic boyfriend choices, this is your boat. Hop in. We’re rowing into angst.
But here’s the thing. The further we get from V.C. Andrews' original work, the more this whole ghostwritten saga feels like a dim photocopy of its former self. Birdlane Island hits the classic emotional beats, dead mom, forbidden love, maybe-boyfriend-who’s-actually-a-literal-red-flag, but it never sinks its teeth in. There’s no truly shocking twist. No unholy family secret. It’s giving Lifetime, not Gothic Unhinged. And yeah, the writing tries to channel that signature drama, but it’s all a little too clean, too safe, too... emotionally gluten-free.
It’s not terrible. It’s just a ghostwriter trying to keep a 40-year-old ghost of a brand alive while writing a novel about a girl trapped on an island, trapped in her grief, trapped in a story that keeps trying to be deeply evocative while kind of just treading water.
Three stars. It’s weird and overwrought and occasionally lovely in that Lifetime-movie, soft-focus lens way. But it’s not Flowers in the Attic. And honestly, it’s starting to show.
Big dramatic curtsy and a misty island thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the ARC. You really said “would you like some vintage melodrama with your maritime metaphors?” and I said “absolutely, I’ll bring the wine.”
The man behind the curtain? Andrew Neiderman. A real-life horror novelist who got hired by Andrews’ estate to take over after her death. Like a gothic ghostwriter slash literary shapeshifter. Yes, ghostwriter is the right term, but Neiderman is less “taking dictation from the beyond” and more “bingeing soap operas and sprinkling in incest vibes.” He’s been doing this for nearly four decades. At this point he’s written way more "V.C. Andrews" than V.C. Andrews ever did. The man is basically method acting a dead author. Honestly? Respect.
Now, Birdlane Island is the latest offering from the undead factory, and it’s giving classic Andrews ingredients: tragic girls, controlling men, forbidden love, and an isolated setting with heavy fog and heavier metaphor. But instead of attic siblings or cursed bayou bloodlines, we get Lisa, a sheltered teenager with a weak heart, a protective (read: suffocating) novelist dad, and a ghost of a dead mom haunting everyone’s grief and decision-making.
This island? Literally shaped like a seagull, which feels like a weird flex, but go off. Lisa’s life is cottagecore if the cottage was emotionally stunted and full of repressed feelings. Her only real lifeline is Jamie, a sweet fisherman’s son who’s got total “will die tragically at sea” energy. Naturally, Dad hates him. Naturally, they sneak around anyway. And naturally, that blows up in a way that has Neiderman slash Andrews written all over it in glittery trauma cursive.
Enter Kyle, the brooding out-of-towner with just enough emotional damage to be YA catnip and just enough age ambiguity to make me nervous. He’s painting things. He’s saying cryptic things. He’s probably a metaphor. And Lisa, who has the emotional experience of a Regency debutante and the medical history of a Victorian invalid, is suddenly balancing teen lust, suffocating grief, and the slow realization that her island paradise might actually be a prison wrapped in sea fog.
Now look. If you’re expecting narrative coherence or character logic, you might want to exit the island now. But if you’re here for overwrought drama, deeply weird parental energy, and emotionally repressed girls learning to rebel by making chaotic boyfriend choices, this is your boat. Hop in. We’re rowing into angst.
But here’s the thing. The further we get from V.C. Andrews' original work, the more this whole ghostwritten saga feels like a dim photocopy of its former self. Birdlane Island hits the classic emotional beats, dead mom, forbidden love, maybe-boyfriend-who’s-actually-a-literal-red-flag, but it never sinks its teeth in. There’s no truly shocking twist. No unholy family secret. It’s giving Lifetime, not Gothic Unhinged. And yeah, the writing tries to channel that signature drama, but it’s all a little too clean, too safe, too... emotionally gluten-free.
It’s not terrible. It’s just a ghostwriter trying to keep a 40-year-old ghost of a brand alive while writing a novel about a girl trapped on an island, trapped in her grief, trapped in a story that keeps trying to be deeply evocative while kind of just treading water.
Three stars. It’s weird and overwrought and occasionally lovely in that Lifetime-movie, soft-focus lens way. But it’s not Flowers in the Attic. And honestly, it’s starting to show.
Big dramatic curtsy and a misty island thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the ARC. You really said “would you like some vintage melodrama with your maritime metaphors?” and I said “absolutely, I’ll bring the wine.”
December 7, 2025
My goal this year was to finally finish my four year catch-up on the V.C. Andrews back catalog (having stopped at Family Storms) and thus be prepared to stay current with the new annual releases. Goal achieved!
So it was somewhat surprising when it was announced earlier this year that Birdlane Island would be the final new book. I say somewhat only because ghostwriter Andrew Neiderman is now in his mid-80s and the rights to V.C. Andrews now belong to the A&E Television Networks.
As the final standalone novel and with this being the only 2025 release, I was a tad hopeful this book would be of the same quality level as Capturing Angels which I consider the best standalone novel (once My Sweet Audrina no longer became a standalone novel with the release of the sequel Whitefern). Alas, it was not. Honestly, I cannot sum up this book any better than the chef's kiss of a review by 'Get Your Tinsel in a Tangle' so go read that one.
2.5 to 3 stars - being a bit generous since 1) it is the final - and let's be real AT LAST - book and 2) references the origin story of the tennis bracelet (1978 US Open with Chris Evert) so as a tennis fan that gets a bit of extra credit from me.
My final rank order of the standalone novels is:
Capturing Angels, The Silhouette Girl, Bittersweet Dreams, Birdlane Island, The Unwelcomed Child, Sage's Eyes, Becoming My Sister, Into the Darkness.
This book fulfilled the 2025 PopSugar challenge prompt #16 - A book set in or around a body of water.
So it was somewhat surprising when it was announced earlier this year that Birdlane Island would be the final new book. I say somewhat only because ghostwriter Andrew Neiderman is now in his mid-80s and the rights to V.C. Andrews now belong to the A&E Television Networks.
As the final standalone novel and with this being the only 2025 release, I was a tad hopeful this book would be of the same quality level as Capturing Angels which I consider the best standalone novel (once My Sweet Audrina no longer became a standalone novel with the release of the sequel Whitefern). Alas, it was not. Honestly, I cannot sum up this book any better than the chef's kiss of a review by 'Get Your Tinsel in a Tangle' so go read that one.
2.5 to 3 stars - being a bit generous since 1) it is the final - and let's be real AT LAST - book and 2) references the origin story of the tennis bracelet (1978 US Open with Chris Evert) so as a tennis fan that gets a bit of extra credit from me.
My final rank order of the standalone novels is:
Capturing Angels, The Silhouette Girl, Bittersweet Dreams, Birdlane Island, The Unwelcomed Child, Sage's Eyes, Becoming My Sister, Into the Darkness.
This book fulfilled the 2025 PopSugar challenge prompt #16 - A book set in or around a body of water.
December 2, 2025
i feel like because this is a stand-alone novel that a lot of story got packed into a small book, rather than the usual VC Andrews style of stretching a story across a series, that the story said a lot without saying anything. It seemed like there a was so many decent storylines and juicy drama to get into, but we didn't ever get into it. There was build up to things that just ended up to be normal things which also wrap up nicely in a happy ending. This did not feel like the usual VC Andrews and I was mildly disappointed that this is the last of the franchise.
November 29, 2025
By all standards a typical VCA (Neiderman) book. This one no doubt appears to be standalone, unless they go into the life of one of Lisa's family members in another installment. This one felt a bit more Mary Higgins Clark than VCA; that is to say - this one was had a more hopeful and upbeat ending than most VCA books do, even the newer ones. I'd go as far as to say the overall tone was lighter and it almost chronicled Lisa's life like a memoir instead of your typical VCA (Neiderman) book.
November 9, 2025
This is a moody family drama set on an Island in Maine. After her mother’s death, fragile Lisa lives under her father’s strict protection until forbidden love and a mysterious newcomer stir up secrets and rebellion. Atmospheric and emotional, it’s classic Andrews — haunting, romantic, and a bit predictable.
November 20, 2025
These books have been one of my guilty pleasures for as long as I can remember. Although mostly predictable and following a similar plot I still looked forward to reading each new release. I will miss the stories.
October 28, 2025
Boring, nothing surprising or shocking. This is supposed to be based off some rough draft vc did but a lady ghostwriter would have done this more concincingly.
November 10, 2025
Slow paced novel of the Baxter family & their dynasty. Lisa’s health concerns, Melville’s greed & Grandfather ‘s astute awareness of the greed is the basis of the book.
November 17, 2025
Not the VC Andrews of my youth but still a good overall story about a girl growing up on Birdlane Island where fishing is the main way of life.
Want to read
December 10, 2025A
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews