Francine Pascal – Sweet Valley Confidential

Ten Years Later
A book in the Sweet Valley High series, published March 2011.



Ten years after graduating from Sweet Valley High, the Wakefield twins have had a falling out of epic proportions. When Jessica commits a complete and utter betrayal, Elizabeth flees to New York to escape the pain and immerse herself in her lifelong dream of becoming a journalist.
Jessica remains in California, dealing with the fallout of her heart wrenching choices. She has a career she loves, and lots of old friends, but she miser her sister, her oldest best brined. With Elizabeth as her enemy, Sweet Valley is not longer the idyllic town of their youth.
Jessica longs for forgiveness, but Elizabeth can’t forgot her twin’s duplicity. She decides the only way to heal her broken heart is to get revenge. Always the “good” twin, the one getting her reckless sister out of trouble, Elizabeth is now about to turn the tables…

Author Francine Pascal finally unfolds the continuing story of Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield – and the whole gang from Sweet Valley – in this exciting new contemporary novel, sure to be a delight and a surprise for the millions of fans of these beloved characters.


As a young girl I used to love watching this tv-series, and I even have some of the books written about it. A set of beautiful blond twins, one a goodie two shoes, and the other an opportunistic flirt, the whole world has to revolve around her. She doesn’t care about hurting others, not even her twin sister. The rich friend, the nerdy friend, the nerd with the crush on Jessica who never had a chance, the jock, the spoiled rich boy. And they all play their part in this novel. Ten years later. Kind of a reunion of your own high school I imagine.

I have won this book (the hardcover edition, different cover) at the blog of The Bookreading Gals. I was excited about it, looking forward to reading it. Tell me, did you watch this show back then? Did you read the books as a teenager?


It is not so difficult to figure out what has happened, long before it is actually told in the book. Jessica and Todd have betrayed Elizabeth, while Todd and Elizabeth were in a relationship. And now, five years later, they are thrown back together. Todd and Elizabeth are just about ready to set a date for their marriage. And when Elizabeth finds out, thanks to Jessica’s soon-to-be ex-husband, she is devastated and extremely angry at them.
It is not eight months later, Elizabeth is living in New York, making a living as a theater critique-journalist. When on an assignment to interview a new playwriter, she discovers he could be a twin to Todd, and is devastated, and attracted. Upon closer acquaintance he doesn’t really look all that much like him though. Her grandmother’s 80th birthday is coming up, and her parents want her to come over. But Elizabeth can’t face Jessica and Todd yet, she is still so heartbroken about the betrayal. Todd is the only boy she has ever wanted, and she has loved him since she was 5 years old. She wants revenge! Perhaps her new friends can help her with that …

Jessica and Todd are living together, very much in love, but also in pain because they both really miss Elizabeth. They are feeling very guilty for causing her so much pain. They need her to forgive them, give them a chance to explain.


I am in dubio about this book. I really liked finding out what happened after High School. But the writing style was not really to my liking. The story is told with a lot of flashbacks, and from a lot of different people’s perspective. What happened with Todd, Elizabeth and Jessica, and how they felt, and why they did what they did.
And I have to admit, I just did not buy the ending of the book. Which is kind of a cold shower, it was way too abrupt.
There is of course mention of love scenes, but not detailed ones, it is not really a YA book, but it has the feel of it. They are all just 27.

If you liked this series, as a book or a tv show, I do recommend it. But if you have no clue what this is about, if you don’t already know the characters, I don’t think you will enjoy it much.

6 stars.