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TrueColors #8
Bitter Rose: Color Me Crushed
Maggie blames her mom for the family's disintegration. "She?s driven him away with her constant nagging and complaining and arguing. Honestly, who could stand to live with that woman?" she vents to her friend Claire. However, there's more to the story, and Maggie desperately wants to know the truth?something nobody seems willing to tell her.
224 pages, Paperback
First published December 31, 2005
7 people are currently reading
885 people want to read
About the author
Melody Carlson
418 books3,250 followersMelody Carlson is the award-winning author of over two hundred books, several of them Christmas novellas from Revell, including her much-loved and bestselling book, The Christmas Bus.
She also writes many teen books, including the Diary of a Teenage Girl series, the TrueColors series, and the Carter House Girls series.
Melody was nominated for a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award in the inspirational market for her books, including the Notes from a Spinning Planet series and Finding Alice, which is in production as a Lifetime Television movie. She and her husband serve on the Young Life adult committee in central Oregon.
She also writes many teen books, including the Diary of a Teenage Girl series, the TrueColors series, and the Carter House Girls series.
Melody was nominated for a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award in the inspirational market for her books, including the Notes from a Spinning Planet series and Finding Alice, which is in production as a Lifetime Television movie. She and her husband serve on the Young Life adult committee in central Oregon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
January 6, 2022
Long winded but good overall message. :)
December 13, 2025
This was interesting. This was one of the few times reading this series where I went in blind. I’m sure I’d read the synopsis at some point but by the time I started reading I had forgotten it, so I didn’t know this book was about divorce. Not that I minded that.
I like how Maggie starts by thinking this split was her mom’s fault, then she learns her dad’s part and she has to learn to forgive both of them at different times.
One questionable element is Maggie’s interest in and sort of relationship with a 20 year old, when she is 17. I wasn’t sure how to feel about it but thankfully this relationship isn’t really portrayed as a good thing.
I guess my one critique is that Maggie’s family is reformed Catholic and their other family is traditionally Catholic but for one, we never really find out what reformed Catholic means and there aren’t really that many Catholic faith elements, other than the preacher being called father, one mention of the rosary and a crucifix. Now to be clear, I’m not Catholic and I don’t know that much about the Catholic faith but I think Melody could have done a better job at making the faith in this book different than her other ones, or at the very least explained what reformed Catholic means.
For content, there’s mentions swearing in Spanish but we don’t see those words. One use of “freaking” as a substitute for you know what. Talks of sex but not in an explicit way.
I like how Maggie starts by thinking this split was her mom’s fault, then she learns her dad’s part and she has to learn to forgive both of them at different times.
One questionable element is Maggie’s interest in and sort of relationship with a 20 year old, when she is 17. I wasn’t sure how to feel about it but thankfully this relationship isn’t really portrayed as a good thing.
I guess my one critique is that Maggie’s family is reformed Catholic and their other family is traditionally Catholic but for one, we never really find out what reformed Catholic means and there aren’t really that many Catholic faith elements, other than the preacher being called father, one mention of the rosary and a crucifix. Now to be clear, I’m not Catholic and I don’t know that much about the Catholic faith but I think Melody could have done a better job at making the faith in this book different than her other ones, or at the very least explained what reformed Catholic means.
For content, there’s mentions swearing in Spanish but we don’t see those words. One use of “freaking” as a substitute for you know what. Talks of sex but not in an explicit way.
March 11, 2018
Issue: Divorce
Sub-issue: how it affects the entire family
Magdela Hernandez is certain her life is over when her parents announce they are separating. So the action mainly comes from Maggie dealing with feelings against Mom, feelings against Dad, feelings for a co-worker, and eventually, forgiveness. The family is Catholic, so the divorce is a big thing and during the course of the story, one of Maggie's aunts dies.
There's a certain amount of self-reliance learned by Maggie, and yet there's also knowing when it's your mistake and when it's not.
Sub-issue: how it affects the entire family
Magdela Hernandez is certain her life is over when her parents announce they are separating. So the action mainly comes from Maggie dealing with feelings against Mom, feelings against Dad, feelings for a co-worker, and eventually, forgiveness. The family is Catholic, so the divorce is a big thing and during the course of the story, one of Maggie's aunts dies.
There's a certain amount of self-reliance learned by Maggie, and yet there's also knowing when it's your mistake and when it's not.
February 7, 2019
Bitter Rose is an amazing book! It is very sad because of what will happens to Maggie and her family but at some parts it can be really fun, exciting, or even make you feel nervous for what happens. Maggie and her family kind of just fall apart with her parents getting divorced and all of that drama. But Maggie blamed everything on her mom until she realized the other side of the story.
March 13, 2019
I loved the book because I can relate so much with the storyline. And it was like I was talking to someone who understands me while I was reading it. I liked it because this is the reality that almost everyone is facing.
January 8, 2018
I think this book was really good it was super sad in the beginning but it ended off strong
December 6, 2017
i loved this book and my favorite charter was maggie and i love at the end when she doest blame her family any more
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 25, 2018
I thought the book was pretty good. Maggie has to figure out how to live her life with divorced parents.
December 22, 2013
This book was written by 16 year old Stephanie, I'm sure of it!
The Basic Premise: Maggie is watching her parent's marriage unfold her senior year. Her relationship with God suffers as a result & she finds herself questioning lifelong love, God, who is the "Good Guy" (shifts from Dad to Mom to Dad to Mom to....) and who she is in the midst of all of this.
Characters: Characters were pretty bland, to be honest. Main character Maggie is a pretty typical teenager: whiny and rebelling against her parents. Ned, college student who Maggie finds herself getting involved with, seems WAYYY too unrealistic. There's a scene where they are making out & Maggie ASSUMES he wants sex & therefore stops kissing him & he throws a freaking temper tantrum. That whole scene seemed totally unrealistic. I feel like Carlson was trying to protray older guys as only after sex & that really disgusts me and also I feel was very out of character. Also when they all went sledding, a guy is giving Maggie a hard time for not drinking. Again, this seemed totally unrealistic. I used to hang out with college aged people when I was younger and while they drank, never once did someone give me a hard time for not drinking. Ever. Again I feel Carlson was trying to make older characters as 'ungodly' and very black and white.
I really liked Tia Louise. She was a great character & I admired her spirit a lot. I feel she was the only character who I really liked.
Plot: Plot was pretty great! I really found myself relating to Maggie. I myself saw my parent's marriage unfold when I was much younger, a 6 year old so I really enjoyed reading from the perspective of an older teenager and what sorts of feelings she went through. Dialogue was completely realistic and Maggie's relationship with her mother & her father were completely believable. She put a lot of blame onto her mother and ran to Daddy when Mom pissed her off. I feel like I WAS Maggie senior year of high school, although my mother didn't start seeing another guy or anything. I found myself completely empathic of Maggie and how she felt so angry at her mother and even though she was being of a little bitch, I completely understood why & I know from personal experience that I've treated my mother the same way in my teenage years. I feel like the fact that Maggie's dad was cheating was pretty obvious from the get-go but that's just me.
I loved that we got to explore changing family dynamics of a family undergoing a divorce from the teenage perspective. Divorces are REALLY, really hard & especially for the kids. Obviously they are hard for the adults as well but throwing a divorce in the midst of a hormonal, rebelling teenager... it can get messy & I think this book protrayed that really well.
The ending: Ehh. It was... weird. I didn't feel everything was really wrapped up, although that may because I don't find the whole 'I left it up to God' premise satisfying. This probably had to do with the fact that I was a non-Christian reading Christian lit.
The religious aspects of the book were subtle & definitely not too overpowering for a non-Christian person to read as they don't really go into anything too controversial.
I found it funny that at one point in the book Maggie says how when she was younger her dad made her promise to NEVER get into alcohol or drugs meanwhile at family situations her uncles get drunk. And really, what was the point of making her swear to never drink? Even after she turns 21? I mean I understand drugs & whatnot but drinking? They were Catholic. Not Mormon. They were generally tolerable with drinking once you are of age, right?
Basically: I loved reading this book for how relateable it was & realistic, minus the whole Ned thing. I enjoy Melody Carlson's books quite a lot. Four stars!
The Basic Premise: Maggie is watching her parent's marriage unfold her senior year. Her relationship with God suffers as a result & she finds herself questioning lifelong love, God, who is the "Good Guy" (shifts from Dad to Mom to Dad to Mom to....) and who she is in the midst of all of this.
Characters: Characters were pretty bland, to be honest. Main character Maggie is a pretty typical teenager: whiny and rebelling against her parents. Ned, college student who Maggie finds herself getting involved with, seems WAYYY too unrealistic. There's a scene where they are making out & Maggie ASSUMES he wants sex & therefore stops kissing him & he throws a freaking temper tantrum. That whole scene seemed totally unrealistic. I feel like Carlson was trying to protray older guys as only after sex & that really disgusts me and also I feel was very out of character. Also when they all went sledding, a guy is giving Maggie a hard time for not drinking. Again, this seemed totally unrealistic. I used to hang out with college aged people when I was younger and while they drank, never once did someone give me a hard time for not drinking. Ever. Again I feel Carlson was trying to make older characters as 'ungodly' and very black and white.
I really liked Tia Louise. She was a great character & I admired her spirit a lot. I feel she was the only character who I really liked.
Plot: Plot was pretty great! I really found myself relating to Maggie. I myself saw my parent's marriage unfold when I was much younger, a 6 year old so I really enjoyed reading from the perspective of an older teenager and what sorts of feelings she went through. Dialogue was completely realistic and Maggie's relationship with her mother & her father were completely believable. She put a lot of blame onto her mother and ran to Daddy when Mom pissed her off. I feel like I WAS Maggie senior year of high school, although my mother didn't start seeing another guy or anything. I found myself completely empathic of Maggie and how she felt so angry at her mother and even though she was being of a little bitch, I completely understood why & I know from personal experience that I've treated my mother the same way in my teenage years. I feel like the fact that Maggie's dad was cheating was pretty obvious from the get-go but that's just me.
I loved that we got to explore changing family dynamics of a family undergoing a divorce from the teenage perspective. Divorces are REALLY, really hard & especially for the kids. Obviously they are hard for the adults as well but throwing a divorce in the midst of a hormonal, rebelling teenager... it can get messy & I think this book protrayed that really well.
The ending: Ehh. It was... weird. I didn't feel everything was really wrapped up, although that may because I don't find the whole 'I left it up to God' premise satisfying. This probably had to do with the fact that I was a non-Christian reading Christian lit.
The religious aspects of the book were subtle & definitely not too overpowering for a non-Christian person to read as they don't really go into anything too controversial.
I found it funny that at one point in the book Maggie says how when she was younger her dad made her promise to NEVER get into alcohol or drugs meanwhile at family situations her uncles get drunk. And really, what was the point of making her swear to never drink? Even after she turns 21? I mean I understand drugs & whatnot but drinking? They were Catholic. Not Mormon. They were generally tolerable with drinking once you are of age, right?
Basically: I loved reading this book for how relateable it was & realistic, minus the whole Ned thing. I enjoy Melody Carlson's books quite a lot. Four stars!
August 16, 2012
After a final (and major) blow up fight, Magdala’s parents have announced that they are separating, and it looks as if they’re even on their way to a divorce. Maggie is crushed, and begins to question what she always thought was certain. Were her parents no longer good Christians? Did they not think their marriage - and family - was worth fighting for anymore? She thinks her father moved out because of her mother’s constant nagging and bickering, but maybe there is something more, a secret no one is willing to spill to Maggie. Maggie doesn’t know which parent, if either, deserves her trust and respect anymore. Feeling torn between her parents, her life seems to be slowly spinning out of control.
Melody Carlson’s portrayal of a family in crisis is heart wrenchingly accurate. The impending divorce of her parents causes Maggie to make decisions without really thinking what might be the consequences. Maggie, through the help of her aunt and God, ultimately comes to realize that no matter what the state of her family may be, or how many mistakes her parents have made, it is solely up to her to choose how to live her own life. She is the only one who can answer for how she will live. She can’t merely blame poor parenting or the separation of her parents for her rebellion.
Learning to forgive others is the main lesson in this Bitter Rose. Many teens will be able to relate to the Maggie’s circumstances. Divorce is sadly very prevalent in American culture, and countless young people face the destruction of their families by divorce. Maggie learns that she must come to terms with her parents’ divorce. It isn’t something that she can control or prevent. She finally makes the decision to forgive her parents, with God’s help, and chooses to move forward in her life.
The Wordsmith Journal strives to guide readers to books of personal interest, with the understanding and respect that what appeals to some may not appeal to others. Therefore we attempt to keep our reviews focused on content, genre and style. The rating is necessary to make use of Goodreads and Amazon. It reflects the reviewer’s own level of enjoyment, but the review is intended to be informative for the benefit of all readers.
Melody Carlson’s portrayal of a family in crisis is heart wrenchingly accurate. The impending divorce of her parents causes Maggie to make decisions without really thinking what might be the consequences. Maggie, through the help of her aunt and God, ultimately comes to realize that no matter what the state of her family may be, or how many mistakes her parents have made, it is solely up to her to choose how to live her own life. She is the only one who can answer for how she will live. She can’t merely blame poor parenting or the separation of her parents for her rebellion.
Learning to forgive others is the main lesson in this Bitter Rose. Many teens will be able to relate to the Maggie’s circumstances. Divorce is sadly very prevalent in American culture, and countless young people face the destruction of their families by divorce. Maggie learns that she must come to terms with her parents’ divorce. It isn’t something that she can control or prevent. She finally makes the decision to forgive her parents, with God’s help, and chooses to move forward in her life.
The Wordsmith Journal strives to guide readers to books of personal interest, with the understanding and respect that what appeals to some may not appeal to others. Therefore we attempt to keep our reviews focused on content, genre and style. The rating is necessary to make use of Goodreads and Amazon. It reflects the reviewer’s own level of enjoyment, but the review is intended to be informative for the benefit of all readers.
March 31, 2017
This was a really good book that will capture anyone emotions. It is so realistic that it makes you feel like a little person sitting on the character's shoulder watching them. I'm pleased with the writer and how relatable her characters are. You should really read this.
Want to read
July 19, 2016This is the eighth book in the True Colors Series by Melody Carlson.
My Synopsis: Maggie's parents start planning a divorce. Maggie blames her mother for the family problems. There is more to the story behind her parents separation. This book was very good. It really showed you how today's families can be so very messed up.
Questionable content: parental divorce, cheating on one's spouse, mild language (cr-d, etc), drinking, mention of sex, planning on giving away one's virginity, parents dating
Pros: This book was a really good book. I liked how the author showed that it was wrong that Maggie's parent's got a divorce, and that she did not promote it in any which way. I also liked that once Maggie turned back to God, she didn't care about the guys in her life. She knew she was special.
Cons: I didn't really like how the book ended. It ended that her parents just went on their separate ways. I know that not all marriages that are falling apart get back together, but I was kinda expecting a little more of a happy ending.
Age recommendation: 13+
My Synopsis: Maggie's parents start planning a divorce. Maggie blames her mother for the family problems. There is more to the story behind her parents separation. This book was very good. It really showed you how today's families can be so very messed up.
Questionable content: parental divorce, cheating on one's spouse, mild language (cr-d, etc), drinking, mention of sex, planning on giving away one's virginity, parents dating
Pros: This book was a really good book. I liked how the author showed that it was wrong that Maggie's parent's got a divorce, and that she did not promote it in any which way. I also liked that once Maggie turned back to God, she didn't care about the guys in her life. She knew she was special.
Cons: I didn't really like how the book ended. It ended that her parents just went on their separate ways. I know that not all marriages that are falling apart get back together, but I was kinda expecting a little more of a happy ending.
Age recommendation: 13+
June 28, 2010
I think this is my favorite in the True Color series yet. I've never experience divorce, either myself or alongside a close friend or family member who lives nearby. However, I think this book does a good job exploring the feelings of divorce, both from the parents and children. I especially appreciated that there are two sides to the story and only the husband and wife know them. Also the importance of forgiving, even though it's hard. I also appreciated that the ending was not perfectly happy and cleared up.
One point this book hammered home is that when you live away and are not in the situation daily, it's not your place to pass judgement, tell others what to do, or constantly ask the innocent bystander who is in the midst of the situation tons of questions. Go right to the source.
One point this book hammered home is that when you live away and are not in the situation daily, it's not your place to pass judgement, tell others what to do, or constantly ask the innocent bystander who is in the midst of the situation tons of questions. Go right to the source.
January 4, 2010
The worst event in the world has happened to 17 year old Maggie... her Dad just moved out! This wasn`t just one of her parents regular fights this was no-sock-in-the-closet moved out! What will Maggie do now? Maggie is split between both of her parents and lives with her Mom for some time but as her Mom turns even more evil than she already is Maggie wants out of her house and into her Dad`s place! To stay away from her evil mother she gets a job at her Aunt`s restaurant and sometimes spends the night at her best friend`s Claire`s house. This won`t help Maggie`s pain. This is a very touching and sad novel by Carlson but does show teens how bad divorce means.
August 11, 2013
A Quickie Review
Magdela, aka Maggie, goes through quite the emotional struggle in this novel. As a child of divorce myself, I understood her struggles, although my situation was a bit different, as my biological father was gone when I was a mere infant. Still, Melody Carlson does very well narrating Maggie's story, though I could have done with a bit more actual Spanish. This is, in a way, better than the previous True Colors books.
Content Concerns: Divorce, implied affairs, discussions of sex, etc., all of which are just as vilified as they should be.
Score: 4.5/5
Magdela, aka Maggie, goes through quite the emotional struggle in this novel. As a child of divorce myself, I understood her struggles, although my situation was a bit different, as my biological father was gone when I was a mere infant. Still, Melody Carlson does very well narrating Maggie's story, though I could have done with a bit more actual Spanish. This is, in a way, better than the previous True Colors books.
Content Concerns: Divorce, implied affairs, discussions of sex, etc., all of which are just as vilified as they should be.
Score: 4.5/5
March 12, 2021
My sole problem with this particular TrueColors book is that the author explicitly tells us that Maggie is part of a Latino Catholic family. While I understand why, I still found it a little annoying considering she really doesn't specify a specific demonination in any of her other TrueColors books. When she does, it is a brief mention of a church's name or something like that. It never comes up again. In fact, I would even go so far as to say that because she felt the need to label Maggie's family, it felt more like she was bashing the Catholic faith and the Latino culture and that she didn't really know what she was doing with this particular story.
April 7, 2011
Melody Carlson has a inborn knack for relating to teenagers across the globe. In her books, she shows that she difinitely knows what happens in the teenage mind and flips it around towards God. This plot is a highly captivating in which a young girl's battle--internally and externally--as she deals with her parents divorce. Watch....er, READ along as this girl goes through the constant challenges of the teenage life!
May 6, 2012
I liked this book, but it wasn't the best one in the series. It was about a girl named Maggie whose parents fight all the time. She finally learns the truth about it and she struggles to accept it. Her parents end up getting a divorce and she lives with her dad, but graduation is coming up so she will move out. Maggie's mom is living with a guy named Rich and they seem to be fine. This book was pretty good and I recommend all the books!
March 6, 2012
As a college student studying Bachelor of Secondary Education, I can say that this book is not just for teenagers. If adults can realize the complexities of teenage life through these book, I think we can help them in their lives...............Educators and future educators must read this book and the other TrueColors series
May 3, 2015
I think this was one of the better books in the series, but still not great. I found it to be less preachy than the others. It was interesting that the author made Maggie's family Catholic, because her other books come from a Protestant point of view, but I felt like the author knew nothing about Catholicism, much less Latino culture.
April 28, 2015
This was a fairly good Christian YA novel. It shows how a teenage girl learns to deal with her parents' divorce including the fact that her dad was more at fault than she had thought and he had claimed and comes to Christ because of her difficulties dealing with everything. It was a simply written novel, but it was well done, and the characters were drawn well also.
November 20, 2007
Maggie is a senior this year at high school and her parents always used to fight, now her dad is left the house and is hiding something. Maggie learns about staying strong in her faith in God and to forgive her parents.
February 12, 2010
Maggie's parents are getting a divorce. She has to blame her mom for the divorce because she is always causing arguments in the family. But when Maggie learns the truth. . well she must learn to reaccept god into her lif to help her make it through
February 7, 2010
This was a part of the Tomi and Jenny book attempt.And it was...ermmmm meh haha..meh...waaa..ok. Ya know that feeling? Like 'stop trying to appeal to me as a teenager yet this is hilarious' vibe. Not a happy ending ish just a meh ending. All in all twas OK!
September 22, 2012
Maybe its because I'm not the target audience for this book but I wasn't exactly loving it. I kinda felt like is read already. It was a bit simple. The most interesting the book gets is over her love interest. Now THAT needs a book of its own! And of course her aunt.
February 4, 2015
This book had a good message. I enjoyed it. The book started off a little...stiff? but I stuck with it and ended up liking it. Not sure whether to give 3 or 4 stars, so I went with 4. I'd like to read the rest of this series.
November 7, 2008
This book was really not worth my time of day, it has no plot line. The Christian background was good, but it didn't get in depth.
April 27, 2009
great book :]
August 28, 2009
good so far
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January 8, 2010so cool
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews