So, the fact that this author is just a ghostwriter, not V.C. Andrews herself, is extremely obvious in this book. So far, I've only read one other book by the ghostwriter (The Unwelcomed Child) and I did actually quite like that book, but it was a standalone. This is the first in a 3-part series that's sort of a spinoff of Flowers in the Attic, and, seeing as how much I LOVED Flowers in the Attic (and the other four books), this one definitely pales in comparison. Compared to the original series, it just seems a bit slow and not much happens aside from...well, a girl reading from a diary. 
 I am going to continue this spin-off series though, mainly because I have the other two books in the trilogy, so we'll see if books 2 and 3 are any better :)