Holly's Story

Angels in Pink #3

by Lurlene McDaniel

Pink Angels and best friends Holly, Raina, and Kathleen have been through a lot over the past year. The summer before their senior year promises to be busy but fun, as Holly and Raina return to their full-time volunteer jobs at the hospital, and Kathleen, who needs the money, works at the hospital gift shop. Of course, Raina and Kathleen will be spending as much time as possible with their boyfriends, Hunter and Carson.

Holly is happy for her friends, but she can't help feeling a little left out when she's around the two couples. She did finally have a boy interested in her, but the e-mails from her secret admirer, Shy Boy, have recently stopped coming. What did she do wrong? Will she ever meet her mystery guy in person? Then Holly's world is forever changed when tragedy strikes close to home. She, Raina, and Kathleen will need each other now more than ever.

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Contemporary, Childrens, Young Adult Contemporary

214 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 3, 2005

About the author

Lurlene McDaniel (born c. 1948) is an author who has written over 50 young adult books. She is well known for writing about characters struggling with chronic and terminal illnesses, such as cancer, diabetes, and organ failure.


Other places to find her are...
https://www.facebook.com/lurlenemcdan...
http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/aut...
http://www.youtube.com/user/LurleneMc

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

By reading this series I am forever changed. I know the characters aren't real but with my favorite charater Ben and my seconf favorite character Hunter dying... It seemed so real. It seemed like I knew the characters and well maybe I did. Threw the story I did learn about them and feel I knew them. When Hunter was murder I cryed only a bit. When Ben died? I cryed more than I ever have in my life. The part that really made me cry about Ben's dealth was when Holly said to say hi to her brother (Hunter) in heavn. Oh and the quote "The angles had a different job for Hunter that day- to bring him to heaven" or something like that. Then when they vistited his grave and Raina told Hunter that she still loved him and just the fact that she had dreams of him being alive again... It changed me and just it touched my heart. That night (last night after finishing the 3 books) I prayed to God that all the little girls and boys like Ben are as happy as they can be in heaven and I promised I'd do something to help others as soon as possable. I've been wanting to help at the nursing home so rigth after writing this I'm going to look up the number. Thanks Aunt Beth :)

[Meghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating for my teen self from back in the day.

[Mandy Lusz · Rating 3 out of 5]

By Lurlene McDaniel

In Holly's Story of the Angels in Pink series, McDaniel stays true to her writing forte in exploring the real lives of young adults faced with difficult and even tragic circumstances. This story begins with Holly and her friends, Raina and Kathleen, starting out their summer with their lives ahead and promising. Raina is dating Holly's brother and Kathleen has a boyfriend of her own. The only thing that could make it better, is if Holly found someone to share the future with. She had been receiving e-mails from a secret-admirer, but he is reluctant to meet. It is during this summer of the girls volunteering and working at the hospital that it is discovered that Holly's brother was shot at his late-night restaurant job. All three girls are shook and Holly's family has to pick up the pieces of a broken and wounded family. This is the story of dealing with love, loss, regret, mourning, faith and hope. By turning to each other and a higher truth, the girls make it through their summer and senior year of high school.

Although this book is brief and a little cliche in its teenage-tragic genre, it is easily readable and slightly relatable. For teens that need to realize that others have it worse, this is the book for them. McDaniel does have the ability to convey emotions through her writing and will appeal to those readers that need a good cry over a love story.

[Ale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pink Angels and best friends Holly, Raina, and Kathleen have been through a lot over the past year. The summer before their senior year promises to be busy but fun, as Holly and Raina return to their full-time volunteer jobs at the hospital and Kathleen, who needs the money, works at the hospital gift shop. Of course, Raina and Kathleen will be spending as much time as possible with their boyfriends, Hunter and Carson.
Holly is happy for her friends, but she can’t help feeling a little left out when hanging out with the two couples. She did finally have a boy interested in her, but the e-mails from her secret admirer, Shy Boy, recently stopped coming. What has she done wrong? Will she ever meet her mystery guy in person? But Holly’s world forever changes when tragedy strikes close to home. It’s not fair that the most loving and giving person she knows is the victim of a random crime. She, Raina, and Kathleen will need each other now more than ever.

[Cara · Rating 1 out of 5]

In this YA romance, Lurlene McDaniel follows three best friends as they finish their senior year of high school. For these three girls, life has had its ups and downs, but they have always relied on their friendship to pull through it. In this novel, however, life takes an unexpected turn that challenges all of them individual ways. In the end, the girls must turn to their family, their friendship, and themselves to make it through their struggles. While this book was somewhat of a page turner, mostly because of Daniel's abrupt disruption of the plot, I would not recommend it. The characters are stereotypical and the plot lacks substance; the novel as a whole is transparent. Although it does raise many deeper issues such as religion, death, and family relationships, it only does so on the surface level and doesn't offer you as the reader anything substantial.

[Kayla W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was mostly good. Spoilers!


I did NOT like that Hunter died. He was in all the other books, and was an amazing brother and person. It was horrible that he was killed, and didn't see that coming at all. I didn't like that Ben (a cancer patient) died either, but it was slightly easier to bear. I didn't like that Holly and her family doubted their faith. I liked that Holly finally met a guy that she liked, because she had complained about that in the past books. I thought this book was so much more sad and bittersweet then the last books, so it is my least favorite of the series. I didn't really get the closure that I wanted at the end. I liked that Stephanie will be out of the picture now. I didn't like that all the friends would be splitting up and going into the "real world". But, I know that they still will be close, because they have gone through so much together.

[Abigail · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came into this novel without realizing that is was part of a series, but it still seemed to work. Granted, I may have missed some key references to past stories but I think that it was just grand. This is obviously a book for girls and more than that it is a book for girls that have close friends. I think it would be difficult for a girl who was a pariah to connect with this novel. It tells the story of three best friends who have been through think and thin. The girls lead typical lives going from work to hanging out with boyfriends. Holly doesn't have a boyfriend so she feels left out much of the time. Holly has a secret admirer who she loves to get attention from. Her friendship is rekindled when a tragedy strikes so close to home.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was about this girl named Holly and how her life has changed since her brother died from an a robbery in the store that he was working in. While she was recoverying and realizing the fact that her brother was gone, she began hanging out with this boy named Chad who has CF and has a crush on her.
I like this book is because it is like a romance story and it is about teenagers issues and relationships between friends and family. Things that I learned from this book is that whenever there is an issue that occur in people, they should not keep it to themselves. Talking to a friend helps solve your problem because they can give you advice.

[Brittany Durrant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book a lot. "Holly's Story" is about three best friends who have been there for each other through thick and thin. Something tragic happens and it tests how close they really are.

This book would be great for anyone who has been through any type or tragedy, because they could relate to it and maybe learn from it.

[Brianne Durrant · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really good. There weren’t any boring parts at all. “Holly’s Story” is about three friends trying to overcome a tragedy which affected all of them. I would recommend this book to freshman and up because it’s a pretty easy book to understand.

[Stephanni Thyng · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not expect the tragedy that struck in this book. It caught me off guard and had the water works going full blow. I should have known better given my previous experiences with Lurlene McDaniel. Once again, her trilogy doesn't disappoint. A truly heartfelt story.

[Mary Bronson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a great book. Once I got started it was hard to put down. I thought this was a heartbreaking book, but it was good. I felt bad for Holly, her family, and Raina. I thought Holly, Kathleen, Raina grew as characters through out this trilogy.

[Katherine Shudt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holly, Raina, and Kathleen are up for a not necessarily happy, but eventful summer before their senior year. Raina and Kathleen both have boyfriends, Hunter and Carson and they plan to spend as much time with them as possible. Hunter is Holly's brother and of course, Holly is happy that her friends are happy. Being as she feels left out when she's around the couples she hopes for a relationship of her own. She often feels as though her two best friends would rather spend time with their boyfriends rather than her. Maybe this won't be the best summer ever for Holly. The three girls all sign up at the hospital to volunteer as pink angels for the second year in a row. When Holly's amazing brother Hunter is murdered one day the three girls realize that they need each other now more than ever.

[Ela (Mouse333) · Rating 2 out of 5]

• I liked this book and thought that it was a good conclusion to the series but it was a bit too realistic for me

• I liked that this book was realistic and had things go wrong like they do in real life but I read books to see all the characters end up living good lives. This book didn’t have a bad ending, it was just more realistic than I would have liked as the wasn’t as tactile as I wanted it to be

• I liked the characters and how there were multiple POV but I thought that there wasn’t enough side characters shown as Carson, Chad and the girls’ families didn’t really have enough time in the book to understand them properly

• I liked this series a lot and I might want to read another book by this author but I’ll have to check which books I pick by her

[Lynz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up Holly's Story without realizing it was the third book in a series, and I think that may have affected my experience. While the premise intrigued me, a child psychologist grappling with the suicide of a patient, the execution didn't quite hit the mark.

The narrative felt somewhat disjointed, and I found it challenging to connect with the characters. The emotional depth I anticipated was lacking, and the pacing seemed uneven, making it difficult to stay engaged.

Perhaps readers who have followed the series from the beginning might find more resonance here, but as a standalone read, it didn't leave a lasting impression on me.

[Kate Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely read these books in order; this is the last book although you can still follow with what is happening you wont have as deep as a connection as you would. Start with Kathleen, and then Raina. This is a great story and a tearjerker in some spots. Definitely reccomend.

[Paulina Hernandez · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this trilogy when I was 12 (11 years ago) so I decided to read it again I really did enjoy it this time around just not as much as when I was younger. I still highly recommend this trilogy to anyone age 12-16

[Liz Towery · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rereading this book took much longer than expected, mainly because I wanted to avoid the pain that I knew was coming for the characters. They handled the challenges well, and a tad unrealistically. But it was good to read again and get that feel of books I read as a preteen.

[Aubrey tatro · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was amazing and sweeps you away

It was a good book and just so amazing . It makes you want to I've in reality and be there

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really got to stick to my check one book pr the series put at one time rule

[Mya Taylor · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t even finish it. It was hard reading the whole series

[Bobby L · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it but very very sad in the story line. They all love each other and loved one of their brother/son/boyfriend… 🥰

[Mads Hanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who in the hell asks a seventeen year old to help deliver a baby????? If I was the mother I would sue

[Sophia Chow]

Angels in Pink Holly's Story Mass Market, 2007, 224 pp.
Lurlene McDaniel ISBN: 0440238676

Being a Junior in Highschool is definitely stressful, but it leads to a fun, relaxing Senior Year. Holly, Raina, and Kathleen are all Juniors becoming upcoming Seniors in the same school, they are best friends. So these three girls are heading to the summer of their Junior year and doesn't know what to do. After discussing, the girls decide to volunteer at a hospital. Raina and Holly will work volunteer work , While Kathleen works in the hospital gift shop because she would like some money over the summer. They have been best friends since young , and working in the same place this summer has definitely made their friendship closer. However, sometimes Holly would feel left out because Raina and Kathleen both have boyfriends and Holly do not really like hanging with the two couples. Holly also want a boyfriend, but recently a mystery person who likes her stopped talking to her. Who is actually this mystery person? Will they be in a relationship? Will Kathleen and Raina help Holly find a love so they can hang out togehter in the future?

While reading this book, I felt really relax and comfortable. I felt like I was in the three girls shoes. I got to know how Holly is feeling and what is she facing. I also knew how Raina and Kathleen was like and how their lives are different from Holly's. This book is great and I'll definitely recommend it to teenage girls. I would recommend it to this group because this book is about these 3 close girl friends and girls will be able to understand their conflicts and the plot more.

This book is a book with lots of special moments and surprises and contains a unique and exclusive plot. It shows a lot of events that can be easily connected with our lives. This book have a positive feeling and it is a really fun book to read!

[Cassandra Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Book review It is the summer before Hollys senior year, she has decided that she wants to get a job this summer to buy new clothes for senior year because her mom can't do it all because she is sick and has MS. Her friends Raina and Kathleen want her to join the Pink Angels Program at the hospital again like last summer, and Holly is having a hard time telling her friends. Holly ends up talking with a woman in charge of the program. The woman in the program got her a job in the gift shop at the hospital so she could still be with her friends and have a job. Holly,Kathleen and Raina have been bestfriends forever and help each other get through the changes and rough times. Hollys wish is for a boyfriend this summer..Holly talked to a boy online who calls himself shy boy. Holly wants to meet him and he won't agree to meet her. Holly and her friends have decided that going to college together is not the best idea. Kathleen wants to stay at home and save money. Raina wants to go to the same school as her boyfriend hunter which is holly's brother. Holly does not talk to her friend for a while because she wishes that they all were not splitting up and going there own ways. When a big tragedy happens all three really need each other. One day a police officer came to Holly's and house to tell them that Hunter has been shot and killed. This brought Holly and her friends together ,they needed each other to get through this tough situation in life. Holly eventually met shy boy, shy boys name is Chad and he has a Disease called CT (connective tissue disease) and is home schooled. In the end of the book Holly,Raina and Kathleen all rely on each other and their families to help them get through these tough times. In the end of the book it ends with all three friends graduating and then afterwards going to Hunters grave to visit and place there corsages on his grave.

[JeniReadABook · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been a die hard fan of Lurlene McDaniel since the 4th grade, when My teacher started the habit of reading aloud to our class each day after recess. She read many books over the course of the year, and each and every book she read us was a smashing success. However, "Six Months to Live", by Lurlene McDaniel, touched me in a way that no book before had because it was my first experience with a book that managed to make me laugh AND cry.

It would not be the last book that had that effect. In fact, later in the year, she would read us "Bridge to Teribithia" and once again I was terribly moved by the whole experience.

After "Six Months to Live" I became obsessed with McDaniel's books and would read every one I could get my hands on. By the time I went off to college I was fairly certain I'd read every book she's written and had thoroughly enjoyed them all.

I recently have rediscovered her books through her 'Angels in Pink' series and am so overjoyed to see that she's still writing and her books are better than ever. Through goodreads I've been able to discover older books that I didn't know existed as well as all the ones she's written in this last decade that I missed out on.

'Angels in Pink' still carry the tried and true characteristics that I've always admired in her stories-totally unique yet utterly relatable characters that become real through her expert story telling, moments of intense drama alongside moments of pure joy, and shocking plot twists that leave you completely spellbound.

McDaniel's manages to weave a new and entirely fresh story each and every time that she releases another book while maintaining that consistent energy that her readers cherish so much.

[Satan · Rating 5 out of 5]

holly faces the summer before her senior year of high school with her two best friends whit her They been friends forever, helping each other through life, such as when Kathleen's mother relapsed with MS and when Raina discovered she had a grownup sister who needed a bone marrow transplant. they go to the pinks angels at the hospital to volunteer.and planned to be roommates at the same college the following year.
Holly want a boyfriend. that possibility sparks a chance when a stranger, this one guy that he calls him self shy boy, but she dosent think is a real and she gets sad because he never want to meet her face to face.
Then Holly's friends tell her they changed their minds about attending college together. Kathleen has to stay at home and save money &Raina decides to go to the same school as her boyfriend hunter so she is sad about this, who also happens to be Holly s brother,Holly gets really sad and depress she avoids her friends for weeks,wishing all of them could actually stay forever together.
But then tragedy Happens their life's pushing all three to the edge. Holly lose her faith on God because all the bad stuff that happens to good people and she struggles to understand. Life will never be the same, and the three teenagers fall back on their friendship to help them survive.
they actually want you to learn that you cant lose your faith because life its not easy and your gonna learn from your mistakes, its shows too that there its not better way to to feel good about your self that helping other and more when there kids,

[Camille Weilert3 · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book “Pink Angels-Hollys Story” by Lurlene McDaniel is in the fiction category. This book is about a normal girl with her own best friends doing nothing but relaxing. Raina is with Hunter, Holly with no one, but a mystery guy emails her back and forth and she doesn’t have a clue of what he looks like. Kathleen, with Carson, has an obstacle in her life. Stephanie is back a.k.a. Carson’s flirty friend. Holly is very close with her brother, Hunter, Raina’s boyfriend. A horrible mishap happens… Read to find out!

In my honest opinion, I would rate this book four stars! I loved all of the fantastic plot twists and surprises! It’s ah-mazing and I don’t think the author couldn’t have worded things any better. I semi-wish that she could change what Mystery Guy has and I wish Ben didn’t get cancer again. I honest-to-god started crying as I finished the book. It was so sad. I was an emotional train wreck. Good job Lurlene!

[Annie Chan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about three girls named Holly, Raina and Kathleen who are in grade 12 and work at a hospital. They all have boyfriends except for Holly but later on, Holly gets an email from ShyBoy saying that he likes her. Holly gets in trouble for emailing him back but ShyBoy shows up at Holly's door saying that he's a patient at the hospital where they work and explains everything. Then one day, Holly's brother and Raina's boyfriend Hunter, goes to work one day and doesn't come back.

I picked this book up because the cover looked interesting.

I finished this book because I wanted to know if Holly would be with ShyBoy in the end.

I would recommend this book to Helen because I think she would enjoy it.

[Chelseaj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holly, Raina, and Kathleen have been enjoying there summer vaction and have been spending a lot of time with each other. Kathleen and Carson are doing better. Raina is spending the summer with Hunter and Holly has been talking to a guy online. He is very nice to her but when they try to meet, he stands her up. He come's to her house unexpectantly and Holly is surprised to find that he has a sickness but he looks fine in person. He apoliziges and asks Holly can they talk more. Things seem to be just fine, when something terrible happens. Someone dies and everyone's world will change. Read the third book to the Angles In Pink series and find out.