“Never forget who you are,” was the phrase that repeatedly stood out to me as I watched one of my favorite series come to life. If you know the story it sounds inappropriate to say, but I was a reader from the age of six and this book took me away from the troubling places I had been, the trauma and religious views wrapped up in religion were familiar. The lead character of the LMN series Origin, Olivia Foxworth of “Flowers in the Attic ” was a modern woman living during Old fashioned times when Men ran the business and women were just housewives.
She’s whisked away from her independent modern way of living to become the queen of the darkest castle that discreetly existed. The setting, time, and place were appeasing to my pallet, even the dialect spoken was enjoyable and different from the norm. The pleasantries and mannerisms of the time seemingly merged with the production of this series and everything fell into place. The acting left me wanting more and the storytelling each week left me in suspense. Four parts are told, revealing the tragedy of events. Mental abuse, a lack of affection, isolation, and no God can become an unbearable toxic suffocating situation for anyone.
No one should have to endure such treatment, yet this story is based on a real-life story of forbidden lust that leads to torturous incidents and death. Oddly enough it was all written by a wheelchair-bound author whose life was lived mostly in isolation, her mother being her sole caretaker. For so long the story was told and retold but the bitter beginnings for me as a reader were glazed over. Everything centered around the abuse and neglect of the children left to die in the attic, but this particular series was based upon the long-hated villainess Lady of the Manor Olivia Fox Worth. The actress gave life to something I had read, but not understood until I reached womanhood. Certain matters a young woman will not fully begin to comprehend until she becomes a wife. This story from beginning to end has been a tale of toxic love, things that should never happen, but often do more than they are told.
V.C. Andrews bought the darkness and desires of evil men out into the light. The diary of a mad white woman, wealthy beyond measure, but bankrupt in morality and marriage. A person does not always start out as a vessel for darkness but can become a product of the environment they are planted in developing an eat-or-be-eaten mentality. God had been written out of her story, only seeds of bitterness lay underneath rage fueled by repetitive neglect and abuse. A relatable story regardless of your race or gender. Olivia was set up by her father to marry Malcolm, a man who appeared to be a dream come true, as time passed she would go from the arms of one controlling man to the next, losing all sight of what had been told to her on their wedding day. “Your husband will look at you differently, and society will view you differently, but you must never forget who you are.”
Days later she began to forget after being repeatedly raped by her husband on the infamous swan bed his mother had slept in. No love, no romance, and no ounce of humanity lingered in those moments You never truly know a person until you say I do. She had married a narcissistic sociopath who would make everyone who knew him and emerged from his seed, life a living hell; he nearly took his whole family there in the halls and walls of Foxworth Manor. A lack of religion led to what was forbidden, Olivia became one with the darkness that had dimmed her once bright light. Hope had been replaced by hate and a twisted concept of love emerged. The inequity of humanity led to her revenge which was far more sweet than bitter in my opinion.
Romans 12:19 NIV
His arrogance was his downfall in a literal sense, Malcolm Foxworth was his own God and in the end, pride and immorality cost him everything. He was bound to suffer inside his own body, similar to the women he had raped. A topic that is not often discussed or written about properly, yet it happens often, I have learned to leave vengeance within the hands of God. The very woman he controlled and humiliated for over twenty years was now the recipient of his entire fortune, house, and his sole caretaker. I must admit I took some satisfaction watching him lose the fight as he almost strangled her to death with his one good hand. Mrs. Foxworth broke the vase over his head for the win, read him for filth, and reminded him who wipes his ass and brings him his meals. He paid for his crimes over and over again, trapped in his own house of deception, lust, and sin. Having to watch the same negro servants he despised, dance in his home and celebrate their newfound freedom.
His eldest biracial daughter, another product of his evil deeds stood there proudly in the room as her mother sang. This scene for me was satisfying, redemption at its finest. Our minds are but attics that hold many things like trauma, resentments hurt, and pain. We tend to toss it all to the side. As with those four children in the attic, the promise of a few days turns into years of unhealed trauma, fueled inhibitions leading to lustful intentions with deadly consequences, much like the course of life. Here’s to clearing out the cobwebs and toxic thoughts that can clutter the soul, mind, and heart. Well done Lifetime.
Sources V.C. Andrews Dollaganger series, LIFETIME movie four part series,”Origin” https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/jan/30/out-of-sight-how-flowers-in-the-attic-mirrored-its-authors-captivity
V. C Andrews is deceased but the writings, movies, and legacy continue.
Author Christy Angelette 
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