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Lauren Myracle brings her keen understanding of teen dynamics to a hypnotic horror story of twisted friendship.
When Bliss’s hippie parents leave the commune and dump her at the home of her aloof grandmother in a tiny Atlanta neighborhood, it’s like being set down on an alien planet. The only guide naïve Bliss has to her new environment is what she’s seen on The Andy Griffith Show. But Mayberry is poor preparation for Crestview Academy, an elite school where the tensions of the present and the dark secrets of the past threaten to simmer into violence. Openhearted, naïve Bliss is happy to be friends with anyone. That’s not the way it has ever worked at Crestview, and soon Bliss is at the center of a struggle for power between three girls—two living and one long dead.
444 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 2008
80 people are currently reading
2715 people want to read
About the author
Lauren Myracle
95 books2,024 followersLauren Myracle is the author of numerous young adult novels. She was born in 1969 in North Carolina. Lauren Myracle holds an MA in English from Colorado State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College. she has written many novels, including the famous IM books, ttyl, ttfn, and l8r, g8r.
Her first novel, Kissing Kate, was selected as one of ALA's "Best Books for Young Adults" for the year 2004. It was named by Booklist as one of the "Top Ten Youth Romances" of the year, as well as one of the "Top Ten Books by New Writers." Her middle-grade novel, Eleven, came out 2004, followed by its YA sequels (Twelve, Thirteen, Thirteen Plus One) .
Her first novel, Kissing Kate, was selected as one of ALA's "Best Books for Young Adults" for the year 2004. It was named by Booklist as one of the "Top Ten Youth Romances" of the year, as well as one of the "Top Ten Books by New Writers." Her middle-grade novel, Eleven, came out 2004, followed by its YA sequels (Twelve, Thirteen, Thirteen Plus One) .
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 657 reviews
November 15, 2008
This book had a lot going on, so much that while it was a well written story, too much is crammed in, and much is forgotten, leading to an unsatisfactory conclusion.
The author sets up an incredibly creepy tone from the beginning. The chapters are divided alternately by excerpts from a creepy diary, quotations from 'The Andy Griffith Show' and folk songs as well as the trial of Charles Manson and his Family for multiple murders.
But the tone wasn't enough to hold this book together. Plot threads from early on in the book, like a mysterious warning from a fellow commune dweller who has visions of the future, are completely forgotten by the end. Some characters are given distinct personality traits - one girl in Bliss' catty group of friends is apparently more sensitive and compassionate than the others, but this trait is never used in the story. And while Bliss is constantly unaware of some of the finer aspects of teenage life (she is clueless as to what a makeover or a parade float is), her former-hippie status is quickly forgotten after the initial glee and shock over her commune life and hippie last name - even as the specter of evil, crazy hippies is raised several times in conjunction to the Manson trial.
These lapses in coherence, plus an unsatisfactory ending, combine to leave me feeling overall kind of blah about the novel.
The author sets up an incredibly creepy tone from the beginning. The chapters are divided alternately by excerpts from a creepy diary, quotations from 'The Andy Griffith Show' and folk songs as well as the trial of Charles Manson and his Family for multiple murders.
But the tone wasn't enough to hold this book together. Plot threads from early on in the book, like a mysterious warning from a fellow commune dweller who has visions of the future, are completely forgotten by the end. Some characters are given distinct personality traits - one girl in Bliss' catty group of friends is apparently more sensitive and compassionate than the others, but this trait is never used in the story. And while Bliss is constantly unaware of some of the finer aspects of teenage life (she is clueless as to what a makeover or a parade float is), her former-hippie status is quickly forgotten after the initial glee and shock over her commune life and hippie last name - even as the specter of evil, crazy hippies is raised several times in conjunction to the Manson trial.
These lapses in coherence, plus an unsatisfactory ending, combine to leave me feeling overall kind of blah about the novel.
May 17, 2011
After three trips to Borders, I finally picked up Bliss by Lauren Myracle. I knew nothing about this “YA horror novel” prior to spotting it on the top shelf of the YA section. The cover was what compelled me to buy the book; it reminded me of the eighties VHS copy of the horror movie Carrie; the book was written by Stephen King.
Fourteen-year-old Bliss Inthemorningdew (her parents were hippies and the book takes place in 1969) was left with her very traditional grandmother (her grandfather passed away) in Atlanta, GA after her parents left for Canada, frustrated with President Nixon’s governing of the U.S., thrusting Bliss into an unknown world of social class, inequalities, and discrimination, as she enters high school for the very first time.
At Crestview Academy (“the most prestigious private school in the South”), Bliss quickly befriends several girls and instantly begins to feel at home in spite of her unorthodox upbringing. But Bliss soon realizes the inequalities within the Academy through two very distinct girls: The gorgeous and uber-popular Sarah Lynn Lancaster and the overweight, lonely, and very un-liked Sandy Lear. Eventually, Bliss ends up befriending both, thus forming the backbone of the plot.
Being a huge fan of most things scary, I wanted to love this book, but only ended up liking it – and here are the reasons why:
I’ll start with the parts I didn’t like.
The rating was knocked from a 4 to a 3 because of the last few chapters of the novel. But the main disappointment is the lackluster ending which should have been as interesting and extreme as the rest of the book. The ending ended up flat, uneventful, and just plain uncool.
I also wished Myracle didn’t write Bliss’s boyfriend (Mitchell Truman) in at all. He barely served a purpose and didn’t elevate the plot in any way. He was useless and tacked-on; like he was the proverbial love interest with no payoff.
In addition, all the quotations that separated each chapter became annoying. I wasn’t fond of the television passages from the Andy Griffith Show; or the references from current events during 1969; or the quotes from the Charles Manson court case – even though it was obvious Myracle was using the Charles Manson murder trial as inspiration for the plot of the book.
Now, here’s what I did enjoy:
The plot moves at a brisk pace; I never felt bored or uninterested. In fact, the book hooked me in from the beginning and I became even more interested as the chapters unfolded. The plot really starts to pick up when Bliss and Sandy visits an elderly woman named Agnes who discloses the history behind Hamilton Hall (an unoccupied wing of Crestview Academy) as well as the mystery of a deceased girl named Liliana. After this particular point, the “freaky” part of the novel gets cranked up – a major bonus!
The character development is another great aspect of the novel. I love Sarah Lynn’s good-girl façade, Bliss’s naiveté, and especially Sandy’s bizarre and overbearing behavior. The dialogue between the characters – especially between Bliss and Sandy – is consistent and natural.
Finally, I absolutely love Myracle’s focus on racial segregation and discrimination which is a vital part of the book – and the ending. Myracle’s dissection of race in the novel is a smart and political commentary on the ignorance and hypocrisy of society. I was glad she didn’t shy away from this topic. It is extremely common that YA novels avoid such issues because they are taboo and readers might be offended, but her commitment to the issue of racism was different and provocative and great; and she doesn’t undermine the intellect of young adults. Also, through dealing with racism in a YA horror novel, she confirmed a writer’s freedom of speech and expression, and that is something I absolutely respect Lauren Myracle for.
Fourteen-year-old Bliss Inthemorningdew (her parents were hippies and the book takes place in 1969) was left with her very traditional grandmother (her grandfather passed away) in Atlanta, GA after her parents left for Canada, frustrated with President Nixon’s governing of the U.S., thrusting Bliss into an unknown world of social class, inequalities, and discrimination, as she enters high school for the very first time.
At Crestview Academy (“the most prestigious private school in the South”), Bliss quickly befriends several girls and instantly begins to feel at home in spite of her unorthodox upbringing. But Bliss soon realizes the inequalities within the Academy through two very distinct girls: The gorgeous and uber-popular Sarah Lynn Lancaster and the overweight, lonely, and very un-liked Sandy Lear. Eventually, Bliss ends up befriending both, thus forming the backbone of the plot.
Being a huge fan of most things scary, I wanted to love this book, but only ended up liking it – and here are the reasons why:
I’ll start with the parts I didn’t like.
The rating was knocked from a 4 to a 3 because of the last few chapters of the novel. But the main disappointment is the lackluster ending which should have been as interesting and extreme as the rest of the book. The ending ended up flat, uneventful, and just plain uncool.
I also wished Myracle didn’t write Bliss’s boyfriend (Mitchell Truman) in at all. He barely served a purpose and didn’t elevate the plot in any way. He was useless and tacked-on; like he was the proverbial love interest with no payoff.
In addition, all the quotations that separated each chapter became annoying. I wasn’t fond of the television passages from the Andy Griffith Show; or the references from current events during 1969; or the quotes from the Charles Manson court case – even though it was obvious Myracle was using the Charles Manson murder trial as inspiration for the plot of the book.
Now, here’s what I did enjoy:
The plot moves at a brisk pace; I never felt bored or uninterested. In fact, the book hooked me in from the beginning and I became even more interested as the chapters unfolded. The plot really starts to pick up when Bliss and Sandy visits an elderly woman named Agnes who discloses the history behind Hamilton Hall (an unoccupied wing of Crestview Academy) as well as the mystery of a deceased girl named Liliana. After this particular point, the “freaky” part of the novel gets cranked up – a major bonus!
The character development is another great aspect of the novel. I love Sarah Lynn’s good-girl façade, Bliss’s naiveté, and especially Sandy’s bizarre and overbearing behavior. The dialogue between the characters – especially between Bliss and Sandy – is consistent and natural.
Finally, I absolutely love Myracle’s focus on racial segregation and discrimination which is a vital part of the book – and the ending. Myracle’s dissection of race in the novel is a smart and political commentary on the ignorance and hypocrisy of society. I was glad she didn’t shy away from this topic. It is extremely common that YA novels avoid such issues because they are taboo and readers might be offended, but her commitment to the issue of racism was different and provocative and great; and she doesn’t undermine the intellect of young adults. Also, through dealing with racism in a YA horror novel, she confirmed a writer’s freedom of speech and expression, and that is something I absolutely respect Lauren Myracle for.
September 2, 2018
The whole time I was reading this I knew I KNEW
That I had read it before but I kept going because I couldn’t remember what happened next and it did keep my interest
That I had read it before but I kept going because I couldn’t remember what happened next and it did keep my interest
September 27, 2011
There are two things I dislike about Bliss:
1. That parts of the storyline frustrate me, and
2. That I can't explain why I'm frustrated without giving away spoilers.
So, to that end, I'm going to cover myself and say SPOILERS AHEAD. I'll try to be as generic as possible, but still...
Bliss - the character, not the novel - is charming in a wide-eyed innocent kind of way. She's basically a hippie Anne of Green Gables, though slightly less imaginative. She has an idea of what's right and wrong in the world, and she isn't afraid to stand up for what she believes should be. This kind of optimism and awed discovery of the world outside the hippie commune really drives the story for about a third of the book.
The she sees two very different girls, Sarah Lynn: pretty, popular, perfect and standoffish; and Sandy: fat, poor, strange and unliked. In order to fit her vision of a more perfect world, she tries to make friends with Sandy, and succeeds, finding her a little odd and trying at times, but an okay friend. Then she starts to notice things: Sandy is possessive. She steals from the elderly at the home she volunteers at. She insists that Bliss spend all her time with her and not her other friends. She is obsessed with the suicide of Liliana, a young girl from about a century earlier.
Things start to derail, and I can't help but wonder "What is the point of this book?!" The "thriller" aspect of this book isn't really thrilling - it's more creepy than geniunely scary at any point, like someone who stares at you while drooling. It's not scary enough to want to turn on all the lights, but it's enough to make your skin crawl a little.
Basically, it seems that the take-aways from Bliss are:
-Rich, pretty people are geniunely nice people if everyone says they are.
-Fat, smelly people are geniunely horrible people if everyone says they are.
-Poor people abuse animals because they are psychopaths.
-If someone tells you not to be nice to someone because they're "weird", you should listen because they're probably evil.
-If a boy you like suddenly ditches you, it's because you've been cursed by the strange girl that no one used to like.
Okay - now if this were just a Christopher Pike/RL Stine run-of-the-mill "scary story", I would forgive this weird things as just trying to turn a trope on it's head (traditionally, the pretty girl is always the evil witch, of course). But when Myracle starts invoking the Manson Family murders as a plot point, this novel becomes more serious. It's like the author wanted the story to be taken as A Serious Work of Fiction, but then could only crank out A Moderately Interesting Work of Blah.
I just don't see the point. I was barely scared, I was hardly entertained, and the ending is just...bizarre. Not bad. Bizarre. It feel like the author wanted to write one story, but then changed her mind partway through and decided to write another one, and they don't fit together well at all.
I really wanted to like this book, but I'm more angry at myself for wasting my time reading it.
1. That parts of the storyline frustrate me, and
2. That I can't explain why I'm frustrated without giving away spoilers.
So, to that end, I'm going to cover myself and say SPOILERS AHEAD. I'll try to be as generic as possible, but still...
Bliss - the character, not the novel - is charming in a wide-eyed innocent kind of way. She's basically a hippie Anne of Green Gables, though slightly less imaginative. She has an idea of what's right and wrong in the world, and she isn't afraid to stand up for what she believes should be. This kind of optimism and awed discovery of the world outside the hippie commune really drives the story for about a third of the book.
The she sees two very different girls, Sarah Lynn: pretty, popular, perfect and standoffish; and Sandy: fat, poor, strange and unliked. In order to fit her vision of a more perfect world, she tries to make friends with Sandy, and succeeds, finding her a little odd and trying at times, but an okay friend. Then she starts to notice things: Sandy is possessive. She steals from the elderly at the home she volunteers at. She insists that Bliss spend all her time with her and not her other friends. She is obsessed with the suicide of Liliana, a young girl from about a century earlier.
Things start to derail, and I can't help but wonder "What is the point of this book?!" The "thriller" aspect of this book isn't really thrilling - it's more creepy than geniunely scary at any point, like someone who stares at you while drooling. It's not scary enough to want to turn on all the lights, but it's enough to make your skin crawl a little.
Basically, it seems that the take-aways from Bliss are:
-Rich, pretty people are geniunely nice people if everyone says they are.
-Fat, smelly people are geniunely horrible people if everyone says they are.
-Poor people abuse animals because they are psychopaths.
-If someone tells you not to be nice to someone because they're "weird", you should listen because they're probably evil.
-If a boy you like suddenly ditches you, it's because you've been cursed by the strange girl that no one used to like.
Okay - now if this were just a Christopher Pike/RL Stine run-of-the-mill "scary story", I would forgive this weird things as just trying to turn a trope on it's head (traditionally, the pretty girl is always the evil witch, of course). But when Myracle starts invoking the Manson Family murders as a plot point, this novel becomes more serious. It's like the author wanted the story to be taken as A Serious Work of Fiction, but then could only crank out A Moderately Interesting Work of Blah.
I just don't see the point. I was barely scared, I was hardly entertained, and the ending is just...bizarre. Not bad. Bizarre. It feel like the author wanted to write one story, but then changed her mind partway through and decided to write another one, and they don't fit together well at all.
I really wanted to like this book, but I'm more angry at myself for wasting my time reading it.
January 28, 2009
It must be said I’ve never been much of a Lauren Myracle fan. The Internet Girls series (trilogy?) may be revolutionary to some, but it bugs me on a conceptual level. I did try to read the first book and couldn’t get past the first page. Then I tried one of her full length novels, Rhymes With Witches, and while the premise intrigued me, the novel felt like a countdown to self-implode by the last page. Which, I mean, it did. The resolution left me pretty devoid of emotion.
(Trust me, there’s a point to all my negativity.)
Given as this is the prequel to Rhymes With Witches, I didn’t think I’d request it. So why did I? Well, I’d read some encouraging reviews that piqued my interest. Moreover, my friend Book Chic assured me this is Lauren’s best work. It sounded like a new direction for her, too, so why not?
Blah, blah, blah, bottom line, did I like it?
Yup, this worked for me. It worked and then some. I loved the fluidity of the writing, the suspense, and the swift but lingering pace. The way Ms Myracle incorporated the plot within real-life events of ’69 (oo la la, nice number*), I thought, was very convincing. All the pop culture and political references of that time period, like the Charles Manson Family murders, didn’t alienate me and in fact set the scene very competently.
Oh, and I was a big Bliss (title character) fan. She was likable from the get-go and had a very sympathetic voice. I also marveled at the “bad guy” character’s—Sandy’s—development. That sinister work-up was awesome.
Now, to state the obvious: This book is creepy! It’s the exact thing I’d recommend as “horror for people who don’t like/are too scared of category horror novels”. Now, I wouldn’t say it’s horror in the literal sense of the word—genre fanatics might be disappointed—but it’s definitely chilling and gripping. Each chapter is prefaced with a two-page black spread with a quote from a popular show at the time, a Charles Manson Family trial quote, or a Richard Nixon quote—very well packaged and kept the novel moving on and on and on.
Me likey.
For a dose of reality... I wasn’t a big fan of the ending. It was too abrupt, too open ended, and felt like a weak conclusion to such a powerful book. I still have many questions (Did Sarah Lynn have some sort of power? Was the fact she had the same initials as Sandy supposed to make the reader draw conclusions about the two?), and I suppose that’s what the sequel Rhymes With Witches is for, but having read that almost three years ago, I can’t recall much. It would’ve been nice if this could’ve stood alone.
Some of the other reviews complain that there is too much going on here, racism, occultism, murder, etc, etc, etc, and to be honest I didn’t even notice it until someone pointed it out. Frankly, this is something that would usually bother me, but in this novel, the only logical response I can muster up for this assessment is, “Who the fuck cares?! Weren’t you caught up in the suspense anyway??”
So, yeah, I’d recommend this one. I was not expecting this at all when I began this book, and this book alone ensures Lauren Myracle is, for the time being, on my radar. I hope she chooses to continue in this path because I for one think it’s a worthwhile one to pursue. It’s definitely one I can work with and get excited about.
While I haven’t read all of Lauren’s work to date, I don’t think Book Chic was exaggerating when he said this is her at her best. Well done, Ms Myracle. Well done.
* I never said I wasn’t perverted.
(Trust me, there’s a point to all my negativity.)
Given as this is the prequel to Rhymes With Witches, I didn’t think I’d request it. So why did I? Well, I’d read some encouraging reviews that piqued my interest. Moreover, my friend Book Chic assured me this is Lauren’s best work. It sounded like a new direction for her, too, so why not?
Blah, blah, blah, bottom line, did I like it?
Yup, this worked for me. It worked and then some. I loved the fluidity of the writing, the suspense, and the swift but lingering pace. The way Ms Myracle incorporated the plot within real-life events of ’69 (oo la la, nice number*), I thought, was very convincing. All the pop culture and political references of that time period, like the Charles Manson Family murders, didn’t alienate me and in fact set the scene very competently.
Oh, and I was a big Bliss (title character) fan. She was likable from the get-go and had a very sympathetic voice. I also marveled at the “bad guy” character’s—Sandy’s—development. That sinister work-up was awesome.
Now, to state the obvious: This book is creepy! It’s the exact thing I’d recommend as “horror for people who don’t like/are too scared of category horror novels”. Now, I wouldn’t say it’s horror in the literal sense of the word—genre fanatics might be disappointed—but it’s definitely chilling and gripping. Each chapter is prefaced with a two-page black spread with a quote from a popular show at the time, a Charles Manson Family trial quote, or a Richard Nixon quote—very well packaged and kept the novel moving on and on and on.
Me likey.
For a dose of reality... I wasn’t a big fan of the ending. It was too abrupt, too open ended, and felt like a weak conclusion to such a powerful book. I still have many questions (Did Sarah Lynn have some sort of power? Was the fact she had the same initials as Sandy supposed to make the reader draw conclusions about the two?), and I suppose that’s what the sequel Rhymes With Witches is for, but having read that almost three years ago, I can’t recall much. It would’ve been nice if this could’ve stood alone.
Some of the other reviews complain that there is too much going on here, racism, occultism, murder, etc, etc, etc, and to be honest I didn’t even notice it until someone pointed it out. Frankly, this is something that would usually bother me, but in this novel, the only logical response I can muster up for this assessment is, “Who the fuck cares?! Weren’t you caught up in the suspense anyway??”
So, yeah, I’d recommend this one. I was not expecting this at all when I began this book, and this book alone ensures Lauren Myracle is, for the time being, on my radar. I hope she chooses to continue in this path because I for one think it’s a worthwhile one to pursue. It’s definitely one I can work with and get excited about.
While I haven’t read all of Lauren’s work to date, I don’t think Book Chic was exaggerating when he said this is her at her best. Well done, Ms Myracle. Well done.
* I never said I wasn’t perverted.
October 5, 2016
Eu vou deixar pra explicar melhor em vídeo!
November 12, 2008
I'm not exactly sure what to say about this book. It's set during the Vietnam War, and Bliss is the teenage daughter of hippies who leave her with her rich, conservative grandmother in the South while they run off to Canada to avoid the draft. Bliss's grandmother enrolls her in a private school, because, well, the public schools are integrated. Just about all of the students at Bliss's school attend there because their parents don't want them attending an integrated institution, and those values have rubbed off on most of the students. Bliss believes in civil rights and is horrified by the wrong-headedness of her peers, but she makes friends with them anyway, because Bliss desperately wants friends her own age; she's never had any, because she used to live on a commune, where there weren't any teenagers.
She also, however, makes friends with a girl named Sandy, who is large, largely made fun of, and, really isn't very likeable. When Bliss first tries to befriend her, Sandy doesn't seem interested. Then she seems to interested. Sandy is really very creepy.
Well, the whole book is really very creepy. Did I mention that the school is on the grounds of an old convent, and that one of initiates apparently flung herself from a window of one of the buildings? And that Bliss hears voices in her head everytime she gets near that building?
It is creepy. It's well-done and compelling, but I did expect more from it; I really thought there'd be a big twist at the end, and I'm still not convinced that I didn't miss something. The ending was pretty unsatisfying, for me, and I almost hope that I didn't get it, that there's more to it than I could see.
She also, however, makes friends with a girl named Sandy, who is large, largely made fun of, and, really isn't very likeable. When Bliss first tries to befriend her, Sandy doesn't seem interested. Then she seems to interested. Sandy is really very creepy.
Well, the whole book is really very creepy. Did I mention that the school is on the grounds of an old convent, and that one of initiates apparently flung herself from a window of one of the buildings? And that Bliss hears voices in her head everytime she gets near that building?
It is creepy. It's well-done and compelling, but I did expect more from it; I really thought there'd be a big twist at the end, and I'm still not convinced that I didn't miss something. The ending was pretty unsatisfying, for me, and I almost hope that I didn't get it, that there's more to it than I could see.
August 24, 2012
What I really liked about this book was how the story started out - set in late the 1960s, 14 year old Bliss has lived with her hippie parents on a commune or some other alternative living situation for her whole life. Her parents decide to go to Canada so that her dad can avoid the draft and they drop her off with her well to do Southern grandmother who promptly enrolls Bliss in a private prep school. Talk about culture shock! I loved the historical details - tidbits about TV, clothes, customs, the Charles Manson trials, folk songs, civil rights issues - and learning about how Bliss interacts with her new classmates.
What was awful about the book was the crazy supernatural plot line. One of Bliss' new friends hears voices and it turns out to be a vengeful ghost that lives in the school and tries to take over girls so that she can be "re-incarnated." I like books with supernatural elements, but this just seemed so out of place in what would otherwise have been a terrific read. IMHO the character who was hearing the ghost was mentally unstable and the story would have been more effective if that was why she was hearing voices, instead of the supernatural aspect.
Additionally, I really disliked the ending of the book and felt like the whole thing was a waste of time, which was disappointing because it could have been great.
What was awful about the book was the crazy supernatural plot line. One of Bliss' new friends hears voices and it turns out to be a vengeful ghost that lives in the school and tries to take over girls so that she can be "re-incarnated." I like books with supernatural elements, but this just seemed so out of place in what would otherwise have been a terrific read. IMHO the character who was hearing the ghost was mentally unstable and the story would have been more effective if that was why she was hearing voices, instead of the supernatural aspect.
Additionally, I really disliked the ending of the book and felt like the whole thing was a waste of time, which was disappointing because it could have been great.
June 7, 2010
I was soooo excited when I ran across this at the library and after I read the book jacket, I couldn't wait to get home and start it. Word to the wise: If you have this book on you tbr list, Don't subject yourself to this kind of literary torture. This is truly the worst book I have ever read!!! When I read the jacket, I was thinking it would be reminiscent of the 1970's horror films that I loved, but boy was I ever wrong. The book was all over the place and not at all scary.(other than the character of Sandy, who was several cards short of a full deck) I felt like there was too much jumping around from subject to subject for the story to make sense. And the ending was beyond pathetic. It left me with alot of questions,which I'm sure in the end, I'll be happy they've remained unanswered.
September 7, 2008
So if you take Charles Manson, The Andy Griffith Show, the Civil Rights Movement, hippies, and a ghost story, mix it all up and throw it into a fancy-pants school in Atlanta, you'll have "Bliss." 14-year-old Bliss is the title character, and her parents have uprooted her from their northern California commune and dropped her on her grandmother's doorstep on their way to Canada. She's nervous about fitting in and making friends, but not to the point of silencing her opinions, particularly about how Lawrence, the token black student at her high school, is treated publicly and privately. It doesn't help matters that Bliss also hears a voice, a blood voice, coming from the hall where a girl supposedly killed herself years earlier.
This was a creepy book, though not so much for the ghost story. Bliss makes friends quickly, but is warned away from Sandy, the strange girl you see in every school. She's the one who smells a little funny, says all the wrong things, licks things spilled on the cafeteria tables, and just makes you feel off. But Bliss sees that Sandy has feelings and secrets, and she can't help but feel sorry for her. Bliss also admires (and is occasionally jealous of) Sarah Lynn Lancaster, the most popular girl in the freshman class. So this sounds like it could be a typical high school girl friendship story, where the outsiders overcome the cruel popular girl, right? Well, this book challenges the stereotypes we've gotten so used to... sometimes there's a good reason to stay away from that strange girl.
I liked this book and I liked Bliss. She's strong, but she wants to find her place in this new life. She's naive and tough and funny and kind. The other girls are nicely fleshed out, though none more so than Sandy. I did think that the book tried to cover a bit too much. The ghost story feels somewhat rushed at the end, though I wouldn't say that it's predictable. There are many elements that work in the background, particularly the Manson murders and the inherent racism at the high school, and I would've liked to have seen some focus on them on occasion.
If you like the feeling of your skin crawling, then you'll get a kick out of this book. Witch's teat... that's all I can say.
This was a creepy book, though not so much for the ghost story. Bliss makes friends quickly, but is warned away from Sandy, the strange girl you see in every school. She's the one who smells a little funny, says all the wrong things, licks things spilled on the cafeteria tables, and just makes you feel off. But Bliss sees that Sandy has feelings and secrets, and she can't help but feel sorry for her. Bliss also admires (and is occasionally jealous of) Sarah Lynn Lancaster, the most popular girl in the freshman class. So this sounds like it could be a typical high school girl friendship story, where the outsiders overcome the cruel popular girl, right? Well, this book challenges the stereotypes we've gotten so used to... sometimes there's a good reason to stay away from that strange girl.
I liked this book and I liked Bliss. She's strong, but she wants to find her place in this new life. She's naive and tough and funny and kind. The other girls are nicely fleshed out, though none more so than Sandy. I did think that the book tried to cover a bit too much. The ghost story feels somewhat rushed at the end, though I wouldn't say that it's predictable. There are many elements that work in the background, particularly the Manson murders and the inherent racism at the high school, and I would've liked to have seen some focus on them on occasion.
If you like the feeling of your skin crawling, then you'll get a kick out of this book. Witch's teat... that's all I can say.
May 19, 2010
Two and a half stars, really. I wanted to like this one A LOT and yet I had a bunch of issues. At first everything seemed really firmly established - the setting, the backstory, the era, etc., but as another reviewer pointed out, it's like these things were forgotten about as the story progressed. Bliss adjusted super fast to going from commune to exclusive prep school, in a way I couldn't always buy. Also at first the historical details really served a purpose of establishing setting and character, but soon it seemed like they were dropped in just to make us remember, oh right, it's old. Also could have done with a better tie-in to the Manson case or none at all because that didn't come together in a way I found satisfying at all.
Also, the diary entries, that was SUPER unsatisfying once it hit the point where we knew exactly who was writing them. Why didn't that ever trick us? I found that to be such a huge let-down.
And, you know I'm going to say it, right?, but I'm still going to say it. Gosh, I wish Sandy wasn't fat AND gross. And, OK, make her fat, but don't make her basically licking butter out of a pan. I am fat and I manage not to smell bad or lick sauce off of my hands or eat everyone else's food or wear clothes that are way too tight. I mean, seriously.
And like many others have said? Terrible ending, for so many reasons.
So why still three stars? I still flew through this, loved the Southern Gothic stuff when it worked, liked some of the explorations of friendship, and liked the race stuff, as heavy-handed as some of it could be.
(read: 62 - read a stellar knock-me-down make-me-cry manuscript. You guys have to wait until 2011 to read it though!!!!)
Also, the diary entries, that was SUPER unsatisfying once it hit the point where we knew exactly who was writing them. Why didn't that ever trick us? I found that to be such a huge let-down.
And, you know I'm going to say it, right?, but I'm still going to say it. Gosh, I wish Sandy wasn't fat AND gross. And, OK, make her fat, but don't make her basically licking butter out of a pan. I am fat and I manage not to smell bad or lick sauce off of my hands or eat everyone else's food or wear clothes that are way too tight. I mean, seriously.
And like many others have said? Terrible ending, for so many reasons.
So why still three stars? I still flew through this, loved the Southern Gothic stuff when it worked, liked some of the explorations of friendship, and liked the race stuff, as heavy-handed as some of it could be.
(read: 62 - read a stellar knock-me-down make-me-cry manuscript. You guys have to wait until 2011 to read it though!!!!)
October 22, 2016
3.5
Fiquei muito feliz com essa leitura, e ao mesmo tempo decepcionado. Difícil de explicar, mas vou tentar!
Minhas expectativas estavam altas para esse livro, já que pessoas que eu confio na opinião gostaram muito e recomendaram. E eu acho que esse foi meu maior problema durante a leitura: esperar demais do enredo.
Bliss é um romance de formação contemporâneo, e a autora trabalha esse aspecto muito bem. A caracterização dos personagens, e o desenvolvimento de cada um é muito real e palpável (foi fácil me identificar com as atitudes da maioria deles), assim a relação bem estabelecida entre eles foi uma boa representação do período escolar. O que talvez seja o ponto alto desse livro.
Gostei muito do contexto histórico (final dos anos 1960) e da maneira como a autora usou os acontecimentos que marcaram a cultura norte-americana nessa época.
O tom pesado que permeia a trama serviu pra me prender e me instigar durante toda a leitura.
Os elementos sobrenaturais usados como pano de fundo são interessantes, mas ficam mal desenvolvidos com o decorrer da história. A autora criou um clima tenso preparando o leitor pro final (que eu espera ser incrível), mas o resultado não foi tão satisfatório.
Então por mais que eu tenha gostado da ideia, o resultado me decepcionou um pouco.
PS: Mas sim, foi uma boa experiência e recomendo muito pra quem gosta de YAs macabros!
Fiquei muito feliz com essa leitura, e ao mesmo tempo decepcionado. Difícil de explicar, mas vou tentar!
Minhas expectativas estavam altas para esse livro, já que pessoas que eu confio na opinião gostaram muito e recomendaram. E eu acho que esse foi meu maior problema durante a leitura: esperar demais do enredo.
Bliss é um romance de formação contemporâneo, e a autora trabalha esse aspecto muito bem. A caracterização dos personagens, e o desenvolvimento de cada um é muito real e palpável (foi fácil me identificar com as atitudes da maioria deles), assim a relação bem estabelecida entre eles foi uma boa representação do período escolar. O que talvez seja o ponto alto desse livro.
Gostei muito do contexto histórico (final dos anos 1960) e da maneira como a autora usou os acontecimentos que marcaram a cultura norte-americana nessa época.
O tom pesado que permeia a trama serviu pra me prender e me instigar durante toda a leitura.
Os elementos sobrenaturais usados como pano de fundo são interessantes, mas ficam mal desenvolvidos com o decorrer da história. A autora criou um clima tenso preparando o leitor pro final (que eu espera ser incrível), mas o resultado não foi tão satisfatório.
Então por mais que eu tenha gostado da ideia, o resultado me decepcionou um pouco.
PS: Mas sim, foi uma boa experiência e recomendo muito pra quem gosta de YAs macabros!
July 26, 2008
Bliss in the Morning Dew has hippie parents and when they ditch her at her grandmother’s house on their way to Canada she is forced to survive in a world that is completely alien to her.
After living on a commune for years, Bliss expects high school to be like The Andy Griffith Show and is looking forward to starting frienships with people her age. Her grandmother enrolls her at Crestview Academy, an elite school that used to be a convent, which makes her both nervous and excited.
Much to Bliss’ relief, she doesn’t have any trouble finding girls to hang out with and everyone seems to be extremely patient with her asking questions like: 1) what is a parade float? and 2) what are Flavor Straws? Everything seems to be going great until she begins to hear the voice of a long dead novitiate - Liliana. Liliana is trying to get someone to perform a ceremony that will release her spirit and allow her to have power again and since Bliss has always been able to sense things from the “other” side, she seems like the perfect candidate.
Lauren Myracle, the author of TTYL, has written a disturbing horror novel that takes the reader deep into the hippie culture. She mixes facts from the 1969 Charles Manson Family Murders, a creepy ghost story, and typical high school drama into a wonderfully creative story. The use of quotes from 60’s culture TV Shows, Commercials, and Transcripts from the Charles Manson trial add to the charm of this book. While the middle of the story is a little slow, it doesn’t detract from the quality as a whole.
After living on a commune for years, Bliss expects high school to be like The Andy Griffith Show and is looking forward to starting frienships with people her age. Her grandmother enrolls her at Crestview Academy, an elite school that used to be a convent, which makes her both nervous and excited.
Much to Bliss’ relief, she doesn’t have any trouble finding girls to hang out with and everyone seems to be extremely patient with her asking questions like: 1) what is a parade float? and 2) what are Flavor Straws? Everything seems to be going great until she begins to hear the voice of a long dead novitiate - Liliana. Liliana is trying to get someone to perform a ceremony that will release her spirit and allow her to have power again and since Bliss has always been able to sense things from the “other” side, she seems like the perfect candidate.
Lauren Myracle, the author of TTYL, has written a disturbing horror novel that takes the reader deep into the hippie culture. She mixes facts from the 1969 Charles Manson Family Murders, a creepy ghost story, and typical high school drama into a wonderfully creative story. The use of quotes from 60’s culture TV Shows, Commercials, and Transcripts from the Charles Manson trial add to the charm of this book. While the middle of the story is a little slow, it doesn’t detract from the quality as a whole.
November 8, 2011
What a fantastic read. Bliss tells the story of a friendship gone horribly wrong, playing out against the backdrop of the Manson murders and the subsequent trial. It's weird and frightening and thought-provoking. I can't recommend it enough.
July 12, 2015
Holy shit...Everything's. Oops, I mean everyone's crazy.
4 stars for unpredictability.
4 stars for unpredictability.
October 9, 2023
This was a pretty interesting "YA horror" novel, but I felt it teetered on the historical paranormal side a little more. I might have enjoyed this more if it was in a different time period (I've never really enjoyed the Vietnam era of historical fiction). Bliss is a pretty unique character and I had a fun time in her head, especially with her background and her current living situation... PLUS her new place in a new school. Her boyfriend needs to go and all those pages are not worth my time. The final few chapters were a little weird (?) for lack of a better term. I would read more in this universe and am going to seek out some more from Lauren Myracle! Also! The format of this was neat and helped drive a faster-pace. Between chapters would be relevant quotes or hand-written journal entries and notes... and I found that all a fun addition to the story.
January 3, 2015
Oh my. Very, very different than ttyl. I didn't really like that book, but more because I thought that the conceit was ill-served by the ordinary plot.
Here, though, the plot is anything but ordinary. We're in Atlanta, in 1969. Bliss intheMeadow (yep, a real hippie last name) is living with her very stereotyped grandmother after her parents flee to Canada to avoid the draft. This is a very different world than the commune... the social work center... or any other place Bliss has lived.
She's sent to Crestview Academy, one of the "white flight" schools. There, she finds some friends and even a boyfriend. Lurking in all of this, though, is the ages-before death of Liliana, who committed suicide/was driven to her death because of her unnatural "blood power". At first, we're led to believe that Sarah Lynn is the one communing with Liliana, but later we learn it's not. By the end, Liliana (now Lurl) has won, and Bliss is almost invisible.
The juxtaposition of Mayberry and the Tate-LoBianca murders with this story are, I suppose, to help readers really get a sense of the clash of the times. Ditto the casual use of racial epithets contrasting with what teens seem to know is a better way. I was amused by the naming of the cat "Regular" (instead of "Familiar") and Liliana's former "supplicant" being Agnes Nutter (Discworld, anyone?). But overall, this book wasn't as disturbing as, say Carrie or Harvest Home, or as representative of the clash of cultures that took place in the late 60s as I'd hoped.
My guess is that placing this rather disturbing book in the past, Myracle was trying to distance it from her "texty" books but it feels like two books mushed into one.
Here, though, the plot is anything but ordinary. We're in Atlanta, in 1969. Bliss intheMeadow (yep, a real hippie last name) is living with her very stereotyped grandmother after her parents flee to Canada to avoid the draft. This is a very different world than the commune... the social work center... or any other place Bliss has lived.
She's sent to Crestview Academy, one of the "white flight" schools. There, she finds some friends and even a boyfriend. Lurking in all of this, though, is the ages-before death of Liliana, who committed suicide/was driven to her death because of her unnatural "blood power". At first, we're led to believe that Sarah Lynn is the one communing with Liliana, but later we learn it's not. By the end, Liliana (now Lurl) has won, and Bliss is almost invisible.
The juxtaposition of Mayberry and the Tate-LoBianca murders with this story are, I suppose, to help readers really get a sense of the clash of the times. Ditto the casual use of racial epithets contrasting with what teens seem to know is a better way. I was amused by the naming of the cat "Regular" (instead of "Familiar") and Liliana's former "supplicant" being Agnes Nutter (Discworld, anyone?). But overall, this book wasn't as disturbing as, say Carrie or Harvest Home, or as representative of the clash of cultures that took place in the late 60s as I'd hoped.
My guess is that placing this rather disturbing book in the past, Myracle was trying to distance it from her "texty" books but it feels like two books mushed into one.
May 1, 2009
If I liked horror genre books, I might have given this more stars, but I am not really into Stephen King kind of stuff. This was, however, very well written.
It's 1969, and Bliss InTheMorningDew, fresh from the commune, having been relinquished by her hippie mother to her grandmother, now must make her way through an exclusive private school built specifically to avoid racial integration post-Civil Rights Act.
And this is where the weirdness begins. She encounters all kinds of characters, who on the surface seem one way, but really are another. Befriended by the ostracized girl turns into a nightmare.
Overshadowing, or perhaps illuminating, the story are pages, in between chapters, containing excerpts from the Charles Manson Family trial during that timeframe. These pages are all black. Also on black pages are excerpts from Andy Griffith Show episodes and the era's commercials. Their purpose was not obvious to me, unless it was to show the illusion of normality that media tried to portray at the time, when in fact, everything was Helter Skelter. Myracle's end notes about that event might even prompt some to read Bugliosi's account.
Also in between the chapters are portions of a handwritten diary by someone with the initial S.L.L. Two characters own these initials, so the first part of the book requires the reader to try to figure out who it is. Once it is revealed, the reader's task is to deal with the anticipation of disastrous consequences.
There is a Carrie-like prom-like scene at the end that brings the disaster, I imagine as an homage to King. I particularly liked the back story of the KKK and racism that figures into the plot. This alone makes it worth reading.
All in all a good read, especially for horror genre fans.
It's 1969, and Bliss InTheMorningDew, fresh from the commune, having been relinquished by her hippie mother to her grandmother, now must make her way through an exclusive private school built specifically to avoid racial integration post-Civil Rights Act.
And this is where the weirdness begins. She encounters all kinds of characters, who on the surface seem one way, but really are another. Befriended by the ostracized girl turns into a nightmare.
Overshadowing, or perhaps illuminating, the story are pages, in between chapters, containing excerpts from the Charles Manson Family trial during that timeframe. These pages are all black. Also on black pages are excerpts from Andy Griffith Show episodes and the era's commercials. Their purpose was not obvious to me, unless it was to show the illusion of normality that media tried to portray at the time, when in fact, everything was Helter Skelter. Myracle's end notes about that event might even prompt some to read Bugliosi's account.
Also in between the chapters are portions of a handwritten diary by someone with the initial S.L.L. Two characters own these initials, so the first part of the book requires the reader to try to figure out who it is. Once it is revealed, the reader's task is to deal with the anticipation of disastrous consequences.
There is a Carrie-like prom-like scene at the end that brings the disaster, I imagine as an homage to King. I particularly liked the back story of the KKK and racism that figures into the plot. This alone makes it worth reading.
All in all a good read, especially for horror genre fans.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 26, 2014
Bliss had an interesting premise, but a poorly executed plot and flat characters. It excelled in the witch-y aspects (the sense of another world being beyond our own and the ability of Bliss to access it) but characters like Sandy, Sarah Lynn, and Mitchell fell completely flat. Only Bliss and her Grandmother seemed to develop at all.
The character of Sandy in general was really weird and the plot became very uncomfortable at times. I assumed I would be more scared while reading as it has the appearance of a horror novel. Instead I was just very, very unnerved. I didn't like how the side characters represented only one thing at a time: Sarah Lynn , Sandy, Mitchell . I didn't take this book seriously by the end, which was the downfall.
If Bliss' own abilities had been more developed and she had been given more of a chance to investigate/grow on her own, without the constant presence of side characters, I would have liked this novel more.
Side-Note: I guess I read the companion novel at some point, Rhymes with Witches, and Goodreads tells me that I really liked it. So maybe check that one out instead!
The character of Sandy in general was really weird and the plot became very uncomfortable at times. I assumed I would be more scared while reading as it has the appearance of a horror novel. Instead I was just very, very unnerved. I didn't like how the side characters represented only one thing at a time: Sarah Lynn , Sandy, Mitchell . I didn't take this book seriously by the end, which was the downfall.
If Bliss' own abilities had been more developed and she had been given more of a chance to investigate/grow on her own, without the constant presence of side characters, I would have liked this novel more.
Side-Note: I guess I read the companion novel at some point, Rhymes with Witches, and Goodreads tells me that I really liked it. So maybe check that one out instead!
November 24, 2008
This book was so.... odd.
Bliss is a supernatural thriller set in 1969 Atlanta around the backdrop of institutional racism and the Manson murders. This is the first YA horror I've read in a long time - partly because they don't publish a lot of it these days.
I just had such a hard time figuring this book out, and I'm also finding it difficult to articulate my feelings about it. It all felt pretty uneven and I'm really not sure who the audience is. The character development, particularly of Bliss herself, was minor and I kept waiting for a twist or resolution that I never got. There are some really creepy scenes that I think teens will be into and its certainly a pageturner. I do want to talk to some teens about this and see what they think.
Bliss is a supernatural thriller set in 1969 Atlanta around the backdrop of institutional racism and the Manson murders. This is the first YA horror I've read in a long time - partly because they don't publish a lot of it these days.
I just had such a hard time figuring this book out, and I'm also finding it difficult to articulate my feelings about it. It all felt pretty uneven and I'm really not sure who the audience is. The character development, particularly of Bliss herself, was minor and I kept waiting for a twist or resolution that I never got. There are some really creepy scenes that I think teens will be into and its certainly a pageturner. I do want to talk to some teens about this and see what they think.
August 20, 2017
Nope. Not even gonna finish this, even though I have less than 150 pages left. I can't take it anymore.
March 6, 2016
Actual Rating: 4.5
-This was an incredible book. I flew through it pretty fast. The only reason this doesn't get all 5 stars is because I was pretty saddened by the ending.
-This was an incredible book. I flew through it pretty fast. The only reason this doesn't get all 5 stars is because I was pretty saddened by the ending.
March 14, 2019
Meh... it was ok. 2.5-3 stars maybe.
***Actually NO- looking back it was MAYBE 2 stars if I’m feeling generous. Don’t waste your time. Very cool premise, very lackluster book. And if you are a cat person- REALLY JUST DON’T! I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a situation where you can’t quite see how bad it is while you’re in it, but once you’re removed, you can look back on things much more clearly. That’s kind of how I feel about this book. I’m actually quite disappointed in myself for getting lulled into finishing it.
***Actually NO- looking back it was MAYBE 2 stars if I’m feeling generous. Don’t waste your time. Very cool premise, very lackluster book. And if you are a cat person- REALLY JUST DON’T! I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a situation where you can’t quite see how bad it is while you’re in it, but once you’re removed, you can look back on things much more clearly. That’s kind of how I feel about this book. I’m actually quite disappointed in myself for getting lulled into finishing it.
July 14, 2021
There was too much going on. I decided the book wasn't worth finishing because it didn't satisfy me. The message was there, but the way it was set up was a little messy.
April 23, 2023
For a YA novel, this was actually entertaining. Reminiscent of Stephen King's "Carrie". 2.5 stars.
March 28, 2022
Bliss
Bliss is dropped off by her parents after being raised on a commune to her grandmother. Her Grandmother has enrolled her in Crestview Academy where she’ll be a freshman. There was a lady on the commune called Flying V (a good friend) who had a vision of her and two girls. V tells her that this friendship is one she might wanna avoid. Bliss also has visions and she has one of being on the pathway of the school, but then being surrounded by shadows (and mouths). A dove lands on her shoulder and she knows it’ll all be ok.
Before school starts there is a string of occult-like murders going on in California that Bliss’s grandmother tries to hide from her. On the first day on school, Bliss meets four girls. Thelma is in her homeroom and asked to lead her to her guide Sarah-Lynn. Thelma is over-excitable. Sarah Lynn is aloof and uses Thelma’s girl crush on her to pass Bliss off on her (Thelma). Then there’s Jolene “the nice one” and Dee-Dee “the outspoken one” Thelma talk about the token black (Lawrence). Jolene, and Dee-Dee also tell Bliss about a girl who killed herself on campus by jumping out a window.
Strange things continue to happen at school. Bliss still feels the presence of the dead girl. She also learns that mostly all of her teachers and classmates are openly racist against black people. Not only that some of their parents are allegedly part of the KKK. When trying to get out of one of the school’s “bad vibe” areas (Hamilton Hall) where blood voices call out to her, Bliss accidentally finds out that Lawrence (the token black kid) and Sarah Lynn are hooking up in secret. There’s another girl -Sandy- that gets teased for being “queer Bliss finds herself attracted to a junior named Mitchell Trueman. She finds out his schedule and stalks him to Hamilton Hall. She mistakes the floor his class is supposed to be on and the blood voice leads her to the third floor (telling her *she’s* the key to the special place). There she finds a key that opens up to what looks like a burial chamber with a door. When Bliss tries to open the door, her hand gets stuck to the key (and the key in the door). So, she flees the building She also thinks she sees bloodstains on the ground.
Bliss makes friends with Sandy and finds out from Sandy that the police suspect that the murders were caused by Charles Manson’s followers. Bliss gets her first chance to speak to Mitch during an embarrassing moment. Sandy calls later jealous. Bliss tells her not to be so needy. Sandy starts rambling randomly about how Sarah Lynn changed. When they were kids, Sarah told the kids not to come to Sandy’s birthday party. She then reminds Bliss -aggressively- about helping her volunteer at the hospital. She says Bliss doesn’t understand what it’s like to be different. But Bliss reminds her where she grew up.
Bliss realizes that she might be just a little bit jealous of Sarah. While at the mall getting a makeover, she mistakenly thinks Sarah (who’s with her friends) speaks to her, but it turns out to be another girl. Sarah invites Blisis to hang, but when she looks in the mirror, she realizes (in disgust) it’s because the make-up lady has heavily altered her appearance. Bliss hears a story from one of the nursing home’s residents Agnes about the girl who jumped out the third-story window (Lilianna). Lillian was an orphan whose adopted parents sent her to the school after carcus’s were found in the backyard. She believed in spirits and blood magic (possibly stemming from wanting to talk to her parents again). Lillian was Agnes' best friend. At first, it was just silly pranks and then one day a girl named Nanette was found covered in blood screaming (and never talked again)-animal blood-. Agnes senses that Bliss has a connection with the other world too and decides to show her (in private). There was another girl named Elizabeth that Lilliana was close to. One day they find her outside with Elizabeth tied to a tree and in a trance. This is when they locked Lilliana up on the third floor and wouldn’t let her out. Lilliana jumped atter her plan to poison the head nun failed. Weirdly Sandy seems to idolize Lillian and be way too into the piece of her skull that Agnes saved. This disturbs Bliss and causes her to avoid Sandy at school for some days.
At an assembly, Bliss’s friend manipulates it so that she sits next to Mitch and the wind up sitting by each other and end up holding hands. Sandy misses the assembly because she has to take a psych test. Sarah Lynn surprises Sandy and Bliss by coming over to their table and attempts to be polite, but Sandy isn’t and she leaves. Bliss considers giving Sarah another chance but she does wonder why she decided to come over. She must know that Sandy hates her. After serenading Bliss, Mitch asks her to the Winter Dance.
The blood voice goes quiet, but then it returns when Bliss finds herself checking up on Sandy after publicly being bullied outside Hamilton Hall. Bliss finds herself telling Sandy about getting lost on the third floor and Sandy demands the key (without Bliss mentioning the key). She also questions if she tried to open Lillian’s dorm room. It wouldn’t open for her. The blood voice says to just give Sandy the key and Bliss does. Sandy gets even stranger. Bliss goes to a sleepover at her house. The house is filthy and smells and Sandy’s room is full of cat shit. She has all these cat figurines and one cat who she abuses and locks in the closet. Later she starts talking about Sarah again and how she used to stay in that same bed and how she use to play this game on her where they’d draw on each other skin and Sandy would lick the design. Sarah told her friends Sandy was “unnatural”. But Sandy says that she has Bliss now and then offers to show her (her) power. She can communicate with Lillian. She offers to show her. Bliss is freaked out and gets Sandy to show her another time, Sandy says she (Bliss) can offer something special but then falls asleep. Bliss decides after that this friendship is a little *too* much and vows if she can make it to the next day she’s avoiding Sandy at all costs.
Bliss decides to pay Agnes a visit. Agnes is dying because Sandy stole the relic (the skin was her communication with Lillian and what was keeping her alive). Agnes says that Lillian will feed off Sandy’s weakness, even though she was initially drawn to Bliss. Agnes warns Bliss to stay away from Sandy. But Sandy won’t let Bliss avoid and suggest they perform the ceremony on the night of the Winter Dance. While hiding out in the library, Bliss and Sarah become friendly to the point that Sarah invites her over and asks if they can do a date swap because her father is a Klansman. Sandy face is weirdly now scarred and her eyeball looks red like it’s damaged. Bliss gets up the nerve to tell her she won’t be performing the ritual with her. Sandy shows up at the dance and blackmails Bliss that if she doesn’t meet her at the secret place, she’ll out Sarah and Lawrence. She says her name isn’t Sandy anymore it’s Lurl or Lurl the Pearl.
On the third floor, Sandy has decorated Lillian’s old room with her cat figures and stolen objects (to give to Lillian). Lurl wants Bliss to cut herself, but she distracts her by asking for the relic. In a struggle with Sandy, she gets Sandy’s cat to swallow it. While Sandy tries to get the relic out of the cat, Bliss escapes. She tells Sarah Lurl’s plan but she’s unbothered because she and Lawrence are in love and don’t care who knows. Lurl appears again and tells Bliss she’s gotten the power from feeding off Regular’s tit. She says she still needs Bliss’s blood but she refuses. She says she’s called Sarah’s father and he shows up with a rifle ready to kill Lawrence. Only Sarah falls out the float during the chaos, cracks her skull, and dies. After this Lurrl becomes popular and is even nominated to be the Ice Queen. People forget all about Sarah (almost as if she never existed). Lurl’s cats from the shelter where she volunteers are free to roam the school. Bliss becomes isolated and so does Mitch. By the end of the book, she feels Sarah’s spirit in a stained glass dove (and the one she’s kept) and lights a candle for Sarah. She hopes that her parents and Grandmother will come get her and let her transfer to Canada.
My Thoughts: Why is there a black girl on the cover of this book? This can’t be Bliss. There was only one black student at this school and he was male? Something in me would not let me like this. I’ve never read a book with this much blatant racism. Even though I am a black woman luckily my experiences with racism have been none. Sure, I’ve heard about it but it’s been mainly from the males in my life. I’m not blind or ignorant about it I’ve seen it happen all the time on the news and in movies. I just wasn’t expecting it to be so BOLD in this book. When I first started reading about how these three girls saw Lawrence and talked about their views on black people I almost stopped right there and was about to write this book off, But I thought ok maybe it’s just this part. IT’s NOT! It’s throughout this WHOLE BOOK! And even though in the era this story was written in racism was just as much in your face, I don’t think this story needed to focus on it so strongly because there was a strong story in this without it. In my Rhymes With Witches review, I said I hoped this would be about Lurl The Pearl’s story and I got my wish but how do you take a story about the spirit of a dead girl calling out to you and a mysterious floor and turn it boring. You overlap it with a cliché story about a teenage romance and a clique story about a popular girl that doesn’t really want her popularity. I can appreciate that the chapters were shorter after reading books where the chapters are 300 pages, but there were random quotes thrown in that didn’t have anything to do with the chapters (Some slightly did). And there were also a bunch of other sections that had to do with cats that I skipped all over. Said I’d go back and read. Now I just really don’t feel like it. There was potential there because Sandy to me was disturbingly intense as a character.I wouldn’t want to be locked on a haunted floor with her. This chick was BAT SHIT CRAZY! Had it just focused on *her* story I might have liked this a little better.
Rating: 3 Maybe skip this one. It errs on OFFENSIVE!
Bliss is dropped off by her parents after being raised on a commune to her grandmother. Her Grandmother has enrolled her in Crestview Academy where she’ll be a freshman. There was a lady on the commune called Flying V (a good friend) who had a vision of her and two girls. V tells her that this friendship is one she might wanna avoid. Bliss also has visions and she has one of being on the pathway of the school, but then being surrounded by shadows (and mouths). A dove lands on her shoulder and she knows it’ll all be ok.
Before school starts there is a string of occult-like murders going on in California that Bliss’s grandmother tries to hide from her. On the first day on school, Bliss meets four girls. Thelma is in her homeroom and asked to lead her to her guide Sarah-Lynn. Thelma is over-excitable. Sarah Lynn is aloof and uses Thelma’s girl crush on her to pass Bliss off on her (Thelma). Then there’s Jolene “the nice one” and Dee-Dee “the outspoken one” Thelma talk about the token black (Lawrence). Jolene, and Dee-Dee also tell Bliss about a girl who killed herself on campus by jumping out a window.
Strange things continue to happen at school. Bliss still feels the presence of the dead girl. She also learns that mostly all of her teachers and classmates are openly racist against black people. Not only that some of their parents are allegedly part of the KKK. When trying to get out of one of the school’s “bad vibe” areas (Hamilton Hall) where blood voices call out to her, Bliss accidentally finds out that Lawrence (the token black kid) and Sarah Lynn are hooking up in secret. There’s another girl -Sandy- that gets teased for being “queer Bliss finds herself attracted to a junior named Mitchell Trueman. She finds out his schedule and stalks him to Hamilton Hall. She mistakes the floor his class is supposed to be on and the blood voice leads her to the third floor (telling her *she’s* the key to the special place). There she finds a key that opens up to what looks like a burial chamber with a door. When Bliss tries to open the door, her hand gets stuck to the key (and the key in the door). So, she flees the building She also thinks she sees bloodstains on the ground.
Bliss makes friends with Sandy and finds out from Sandy that the police suspect that the murders were caused by Charles Manson’s followers. Bliss gets her first chance to speak to Mitch during an embarrassing moment. Sandy calls later jealous. Bliss tells her not to be so needy. Sandy starts rambling randomly about how Sarah Lynn changed. When they were kids, Sarah told the kids not to come to Sandy’s birthday party. She then reminds Bliss -aggressively- about helping her volunteer at the hospital. She says Bliss doesn’t understand what it’s like to be different. But Bliss reminds her where she grew up.
Bliss realizes that she might be just a little bit jealous of Sarah. While at the mall getting a makeover, she mistakenly thinks Sarah (who’s with her friends) speaks to her, but it turns out to be another girl. Sarah invites Blisis to hang, but when she looks in the mirror, she realizes (in disgust) it’s because the make-up lady has heavily altered her appearance. Bliss hears a story from one of the nursing home’s residents Agnes about the girl who jumped out the third-story window (Lilianna). Lillian was an orphan whose adopted parents sent her to the school after carcus’s were found in the backyard. She believed in spirits and blood magic (possibly stemming from wanting to talk to her parents again). Lillian was Agnes' best friend. At first, it was just silly pranks and then one day a girl named Nanette was found covered in blood screaming (and never talked again)-animal blood-. Agnes senses that Bliss has a connection with the other world too and decides to show her (in private). There was another girl named Elizabeth that Lilliana was close to. One day they find her outside with Elizabeth tied to a tree and in a trance. This is when they locked Lilliana up on the third floor and wouldn’t let her out. Lilliana jumped atter her plan to poison the head nun failed. Weirdly Sandy seems to idolize Lillian and be way too into the piece of her skull that Agnes saved. This disturbs Bliss and causes her to avoid Sandy at school for some days.
At an assembly, Bliss’s friend manipulates it so that she sits next to Mitch and the wind up sitting by each other and end up holding hands. Sandy misses the assembly because she has to take a psych test. Sarah Lynn surprises Sandy and Bliss by coming over to their table and attempts to be polite, but Sandy isn’t and she leaves. Bliss considers giving Sarah another chance but she does wonder why she decided to come over. She must know that Sandy hates her. After serenading Bliss, Mitch asks her to the Winter Dance.
The blood voice goes quiet, but then it returns when Bliss finds herself checking up on Sandy after publicly being bullied outside Hamilton Hall. Bliss finds herself telling Sandy about getting lost on the third floor and Sandy demands the key (without Bliss mentioning the key). She also questions if she tried to open Lillian’s dorm room. It wouldn’t open for her. The blood voice says to just give Sandy the key and Bliss does. Sandy gets even stranger. Bliss goes to a sleepover at her house. The house is filthy and smells and Sandy’s room is full of cat shit. She has all these cat figurines and one cat who she abuses and locks in the closet. Later she starts talking about Sarah again and how she used to stay in that same bed and how she use to play this game on her where they’d draw on each other skin and Sandy would lick the design. Sarah told her friends Sandy was “unnatural”. But Sandy says that she has Bliss now and then offers to show her (her) power. She can communicate with Lillian. She offers to show her. Bliss is freaked out and gets Sandy to show her another time, Sandy says she (Bliss) can offer something special but then falls asleep. Bliss decides after that this friendship is a little *too* much and vows if she can make it to the next day she’s avoiding Sandy at all costs.
Bliss decides to pay Agnes a visit. Agnes is dying because Sandy stole the relic (the skin was her communication with Lillian and what was keeping her alive). Agnes says that Lillian will feed off Sandy’s weakness, even though she was initially drawn to Bliss. Agnes warns Bliss to stay away from Sandy. But Sandy won’t let Bliss avoid and suggest they perform the ceremony on the night of the Winter Dance. While hiding out in the library, Bliss and Sarah become friendly to the point that Sarah invites her over and asks if they can do a date swap because her father is a Klansman. Sandy face is weirdly now scarred and her eyeball looks red like it’s damaged. Bliss gets up the nerve to tell her she won’t be performing the ritual with her. Sandy shows up at the dance and blackmails Bliss that if she doesn’t meet her at the secret place, she’ll out Sarah and Lawrence. She says her name isn’t Sandy anymore it’s Lurl or Lurl the Pearl.
On the third floor, Sandy has decorated Lillian’s old room with her cat figures and stolen objects (to give to Lillian). Lurl wants Bliss to cut herself, but she distracts her by asking for the relic. In a struggle with Sandy, she gets Sandy’s cat to swallow it. While Sandy tries to get the relic out of the cat, Bliss escapes. She tells Sarah Lurl’s plan but she’s unbothered because she and Lawrence are in love and don’t care who knows. Lurl appears again and tells Bliss she’s gotten the power from feeding off Regular’s tit. She says she still needs Bliss’s blood but she refuses. She says she’s called Sarah’s father and he shows up with a rifle ready to kill Lawrence. Only Sarah falls out the float during the chaos, cracks her skull, and dies. After this Lurrl becomes popular and is even nominated to be the Ice Queen. People forget all about Sarah (almost as if she never existed). Lurl’s cats from the shelter where she volunteers are free to roam the school. Bliss becomes isolated and so does Mitch. By the end of the book, she feels Sarah’s spirit in a stained glass dove (and the one she’s kept) and lights a candle for Sarah. She hopes that her parents and Grandmother will come get her and let her transfer to Canada.
My Thoughts: Why is there a black girl on the cover of this book? This can’t be Bliss. There was only one black student at this school and he was male? Something in me would not let me like this. I’ve never read a book with this much blatant racism. Even though I am a black woman luckily my experiences with racism have been none. Sure, I’ve heard about it but it’s been mainly from the males in my life. I’m not blind or ignorant about it I’ve seen it happen all the time on the news and in movies. I just wasn’t expecting it to be so BOLD in this book. When I first started reading about how these three girls saw Lawrence and talked about their views on black people I almost stopped right there and was about to write this book off, But I thought ok maybe it’s just this part. IT’s NOT! It’s throughout this WHOLE BOOK! And even though in the era this story was written in racism was just as much in your face, I don’t think this story needed to focus on it so strongly because there was a strong story in this without it. In my Rhymes With Witches review, I said I hoped this would be about Lurl The Pearl’s story and I got my wish but how do you take a story about the spirit of a dead girl calling out to you and a mysterious floor and turn it boring. You overlap it with a cliché story about a teenage romance and a clique story about a popular girl that doesn’t really want her popularity. I can appreciate that the chapters were shorter after reading books where the chapters are 300 pages, but there were random quotes thrown in that didn’t have anything to do with the chapters (Some slightly did). And there were also a bunch of other sections that had to do with cats that I skipped all over. Said I’d go back and read. Now I just really don’t feel like it. There was potential there because Sandy to me was disturbingly intense as a character.I wouldn’t want to be locked on a haunted floor with her. This chick was BAT SHIT CRAZY! Had it just focused on *her* story I might have liked this a little better.
Rating: 3 Maybe skip this one. It errs on OFFENSIVE!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 11, 2018
I enjoyed this book but I was hoping for more spooky or scarier moments throughout the whole book. I think it just needed a little more hair raising moments.
April 14, 2019
Starting a new series book. She is sent to her grandparent's home and it feels like she is on an alien planet.
June 27, 2019
This book was pretty good. Definitely a Teen read. It was easy to follow. The horror aspects were done well. The suspense was great. I didn’t like how it ended, but that’s not due to writing - it just wasn’t a happy ending lol but it shouldn’t be. All in all, I enjoyed the book and wouldn’t hesitate to read the next one.
January 24, 2013
Bliss, by Lauren Myracle is the book that I was reading and the book is about a fourteen year old girl named Bliss. She has recently moved in with her grandmother and is attending a new school named Crestview. Bliss is not that thrilled about being the new girl at school but she has no choice. Bliss becomes friends with some girls and from her experiences at Crestview she will regret becoming friends with one of them. Bliss soon finds out a secret about the school that will change the way she thinks about her new school and friends. Even though it seems like there was unfinished business, I would recommend this book because it has a bit of horror and there are unexpected events.
In the book Bliss meets this girl named Sandy and they soon become friends. As time goes on Bliss starts to see the real side of Sandy. Sandy actually caused the death of one her classmates and after the death of that classmate, nothing happens to Sandy “She dips her finger in Sarah Lynn’s blood and, looking straight at me, puts it in her mouth.” (Bliss428). She seems to have gotten away with it and she goes on with life like if nothing happened. Sandy should have gone to a mental institution because she was not right in the head. Sandy basically got away with murder and it just seems like more could have been added to the story so that it could have made a bit more sense and so that the ending could have been better.
Since Bliss started Crestview, she sensed something strange about it, especially in Hamilton Hall and she avoids it as much as she can “We’ve reached Hamilton Hall, the very building I’ve gone to such pains to avoid” (60). Bliss soon discovers that Hamilton Hall is haunted by a girl who committed suicide. The girl’s name was Liliana and she was not a good person while she was living, she did terrible things to the other girls. The thought of knowing that someone committed suicide at her school scared Bliss. The ghost girl is bad, she fills Bliss’s head with bad thoughts and she instructed Sandy to do terrible things. The ghost seemed to only communicate with Bliss and Sandy, but Bliss decided to just avoid it as much as she could, Sandy on the other hand, became obsessed with doing everything that the ghost told her to do.
On Bliss’s first day Crestview, a girl named Sarah Lynn was supposed to mentor her, but instead she had someone else mentor Bliss “Thelma, could you do me a huge favor and take over? (Bliss 32). Time goes by and Sarah Lynn and Bliss start talking and hanging out, they pretty much became friends. Sarah Lynn’s father was a racist man and on the night of the winter dance he finds out Sarah Lynn was at the dance with a black guy that she liked. He rushed over to the school with a rifle and because of all the chaos Sarah Lynn fell from the stage and landed on the floor, she hit her head and a pool of blood surrounded her. Bliss ran to Sarah Lynn and started crying, she could not believe that Sarah Lynn was dead. Sarah Lynn was the last person that you would expect to die in the book because she was popular girl.
Even though it seems like there was unfinished business, I would recommend this book because it has a bit of horror and there are unexpected events. The book really is a good book to read; once you start reading you can’t really put it down. The ghost part of the book is really interesting because you really wouldn’t think that a girl would commit suicide at a catholic high school and that her spirit would be haunting it. Sarah Lynn’s death was just one of the unexpected events. This book really did keep me reading and I enjoyed it. I recommend all of my friends to read it.
In the book Bliss meets this girl named Sandy and they soon become friends. As time goes on Bliss starts to see the real side of Sandy. Sandy actually caused the death of one her classmates and after the death of that classmate, nothing happens to Sandy “She dips her finger in Sarah Lynn’s blood and, looking straight at me, puts it in her mouth.” (Bliss428). She seems to have gotten away with it and she goes on with life like if nothing happened. Sandy should have gone to a mental institution because she was not right in the head. Sandy basically got away with murder and it just seems like more could have been added to the story so that it could have made a bit more sense and so that the ending could have been better.
Since Bliss started Crestview, she sensed something strange about it, especially in Hamilton Hall and she avoids it as much as she can “We’ve reached Hamilton Hall, the very building I’ve gone to such pains to avoid” (60). Bliss soon discovers that Hamilton Hall is haunted by a girl who committed suicide. The girl’s name was Liliana and she was not a good person while she was living, she did terrible things to the other girls. The thought of knowing that someone committed suicide at her school scared Bliss. The ghost girl is bad, she fills Bliss’s head with bad thoughts and she instructed Sandy to do terrible things. The ghost seemed to only communicate with Bliss and Sandy, but Bliss decided to just avoid it as much as she could, Sandy on the other hand, became obsessed with doing everything that the ghost told her to do.
On Bliss’s first day Crestview, a girl named Sarah Lynn was supposed to mentor her, but instead she had someone else mentor Bliss “Thelma, could you do me a huge favor and take over? (Bliss 32). Time goes by and Sarah Lynn and Bliss start talking and hanging out, they pretty much became friends. Sarah Lynn’s father was a racist man and on the night of the winter dance he finds out Sarah Lynn was at the dance with a black guy that she liked. He rushed over to the school with a rifle and because of all the chaos Sarah Lynn fell from the stage and landed on the floor, she hit her head and a pool of blood surrounded her. Bliss ran to Sarah Lynn and started crying, she could not believe that Sarah Lynn was dead. Sarah Lynn was the last person that you would expect to die in the book because she was popular girl.
Even though it seems like there was unfinished business, I would recommend this book because it has a bit of horror and there are unexpected events. The book really is a good book to read; once you start reading you can’t really put it down. The ghost part of the book is really interesting because you really wouldn’t think that a girl would commit suicide at a catholic high school and that her spirit would be haunting it. Sarah Lynn’s death was just one of the unexpected events. This book really did keep me reading and I enjoyed it. I recommend all of my friends to read it.
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