V.C. Andrews, the celebrated author of FLOWERS IN THE ATTIC, gives readers a family novel, complicated by secrets too terrible to swallow.

At 16, Clara Sue Sanders has endured much heartbreak. It all started when both her parents were killed in a boating accident while on an Italian vacation. She and her younger brother, Willie, have lived with their maternal grandparents since that fateful day. Several years later, Grandmother Arnold suffered a massive stroke and passed away. Now, the two children reside with a nanny, housekeeper, cook and Grandpa Arnold. The Arnold home is a well-groomed 10-acre estate, complete with a winding driveway inside secured gates. Grandpa Arnold has made his fortune in the long haul trucking industry, still operating from both the home office and his business location.

Clara Sue is a watchful overseer to Willie, cherishing her closest living family member. But her world is turned upside down again when a drunk driver plows into Willie and their nanny, Myra. She races to the scene with Grandpa Arnold to the blood and destruction just minutes from their house. Sirens wail, announcing that help is on the way. Stunned, Grandpa and Clara Sue follow the ambulance to the hospital, where trained doctors can heal the hurt inflicted on their loved ones.

"SECRET BROTHER is not only a coming-of-age story but also a study in intergenerational relationships."

The emergency room scene is chaotic because a second young boy close to Willie’s age has been brought in. Sadly, no loving family waits for him. He’s comatose, white-faced, frail and nearly lifeless. He’s been abandoned at the hospital entrance and determined to have been poisoned. Meanwhile, Willie and Myra are treated out of sight while the family stews. Myra’s injuries are not life-threatening, but Willie cannot be saved. Before returning home following the heartbreaking news, Grandpa talks to the medical staff about the poisoned boy’s condition. Clara Sue cannot fathom that her Grandpa has any sympathy left for a stranger.

Grandpa’s son, Uncle Bobby, comes home for Willie’s service and burial. He is considered the black sheep because he refused to continue in the trucking business and instead pursued a career as an actor-dancer in a Broadway play. He is a comfort to Clara Sue and tries to help her understand the behavior his father exhibits. It is bizarre to her because Grandpa undertakes a remodel, renovating staircases and doorways to accommodate medical equipment. He even hires a live-in nurse, Dorian Camden, to care for the poisoned boy upon his release from the hospital. He will recuperate at their mansion and sleep in Willie’s room. Clara Sue is beside herself, overwhelmed by grief but enraged at the audacity of her grandfather. The boy is even given a temporary name: William Arnold. 

Clara Sue disobeys Grandpa every chance she gets, breaking through the tight rein he has kept on her for years. She rebels by riding to school with a boy, unheard of in the rules constricting her. She is determined to locate William Arnold’s family so he can return to them immediately. She buries herself in self-pity but consoles her pain by writing letters to Willie and stashing them away in a drawer.

A romantic encounter with Aaron Podwell and a date to a friend’s party lead to sexual arousal, and Clara Sue is faced with new challenges. SECRET BROTHER is not only a coming-of-age story but also a study in intergenerational relationships. Act 1, in Clara Sue’s mind, brings sorrow, raw anger and entrapment thanks to the unwanted guest. Her struggles lead to a growth intermission, with Act 2 in the wings.