Time elapsed in this book: 3 weeks
Length of their junior year: 2 years, 6 months
Jessica’s love interest: None
Entertainment rating: 7/10, although this book is OFF THE CHARTS when it comes to being memorable
Is there a book in the entire Sweet Valley High series that’s more memorable than this one? This is THE BOOK that an entire generation of readers had burned into their memory and was more effective at keeping kids of drugs than any “just say no” program! I vividly remember this plot despite probably only reading this once as a kid.
The cover: Regina, looking as beautiful as ever (she was a model, after all), is sad as she gazes at a framed black and white photo of Bruce. What is it with the teens of Sweet Valley framing black and white photos of their loved ones? We saw the same thing on the cover of Dear Sister. Also, we really are in the phase of books where we’re getting full on scenes on the covers instead of just awkwardly posed portraits. Here, we get to see part of what I assume is Regina’s bedroom. I’m confused about what the item is in the foreground, though. It’s like a pink bowl with an empty baby bottle sticking out of it, but I know this can’t be right. What is this supposed to be??
The book opens with Amy telling Jess that something is happening between herself and Bruce. They’ve been working on a project for health class together, and Amy’s convinced that Bruce is on the verge of breaking up with Regina for her. Jess isn’t convinced, but other cheerleaders think Bruce has been paying Amy a lot of attention lately. Jess tells Liz about this later, and Liz hopes that Bruce comes to his sense and realizes that Regina is way better than Amy.
Amy and Bruce work on their project. Amy tells Bruce about some made-up dream she had about him kissing her, and Bruce is hooked. She tells him that she actually does want him to kiss her. He obliges. Amy then tells him she doesn’t want to get between Bruce and Regina, waiting for Bruce to take the bait and promise to break up with Regina. Bruce doesn’t promise that, but he does tell Amy that he needs to see her again and that he’d forgotten how nice it was to “share the old Bruce magic with more than one girl.” Somehow Amy doesn’t think this is gross (apparently she believes she’ll be the only girl soon). Bruce says he’s sure he can convince Regina to let him do what he wants. Sure, Bruce. Sure.
At school, Regina is confused when Bruce doesn’t meet her for lunch. She ends up eating with a guy named Justin Belson. He tells her he’s her biggest fan ever since she was on the cover of Ingenue and that he bought 3 copies of that issue. Ewwww. He asks if she wants to go to a basketball game that night, and Regina says no, she has a boyfriend. Justin says he understands and that maybe they can eat lunch together again soon. Across the cafeteria, Jess and Amy are confused why Regina is eating with Justin, who has a reputation for hanging out with a druggie crowd.
The twins host a party. Liz wants to tell Regina about Bruce and Amy since everyone else has heard the rumors, but Jess thinks Regina will find out soon enough. Liz talks to Jeffrey about the dilemma, and Jeffrey says that Liz doesn’t know if the rumors are true and that if Liz tells Regina, Regina might get mad at Liz. Liz agrees not to say anything but isn’t sure if this is the right decision.
Regina talks to Bruce before the party about how distant he’s being lately and how much time he’s been spending with Amy. Bruce says he’s just working on a project with her and then they head into the party. The gang starts playing “frisbee baseball” in the backyard (how big is the Wakefields’ backyard?!?). Regina sits by the pool, and Bruce and Amy disappear behind a tree. Jeffrey and Liz notice this; they decide that Liz should distract Regina while Jeffrey tells Amy and Bruce to knock it off. Regina catches sight of Bruce and Amy as Jeffrey leads them out from behind the tree. She realizes that everyone but her has known what’s going on! She tells Liz she never wants to speak to her again, then tells Bruce she’s taking his car home and that he can pick up his keys and the 1bruce1 later. I’m so proud of Regina in this scene!
Regina makes plans to meet up with Justin and some of his friends the next day as a distraction. He takes her to Kelly’s, the seedy bar in town where everyone knows that minors are freely served, yet somehow the place never gets shut down. Justin is surprised that Regina’s never been there and tells her that she can pick the place they go to next time. He orders a beer and she gets a Coke. Justin tells her about his unhappy life: his dad was murdered two years ago, his mom got hooked on pills after that, and he took a year off school to process it all. His now ex-girlfriend, Molly Hecht, was the only thing that kept him together, but they broke up because she started getting involved with Jan Brown and others in the hard-core druggie crowd and he doesn’t want to date her until she gets away from that.
At school on Monday, Amy tells Jess that her party was one of the most perfect days of her life. Amy spies Regina across the room, eating lunch with Justin. Amy says she hopes that Regina doesn’t rush into a new relationship because it might make Bruce crazy with jealousy. Amy has zero self-awareness.
In the hallway, Justin introduces Regina to Molly. Molly is polite and invites them both to a party at her house that weekend, saying her mom will be out of town so it’s time for her to throw her yearly bash. She says there’s a rumor Buzz will show and that she thinks Regina will like him. Justin says he hopes Buzz doesn’t show up.
Liz tries to apologize to Regina for not telling her about the Amy/Bruce rumors earlier, but Regina doesn’t want to talk to her.
Amy and Bruce meet up with Amy’s cousin, Mimi. Mimi is nineteen and studying social work at Sweet Valley College. I would wonder if she knows Steven, since he’s a student there too and they’re the same age, but we all know Steven doesn’t associate with college girls and just goes for the high schoolers. Anyway, Mimi knows a lot about the drug scene in town and provides a lot of good information to Amy and Bruce for their project. Mimi asks if they know who Molly Hecht is and says that Molly’s having a party that weekend and that Buzz, the biggest drug dealer at Sweet Valley College, is rumored to be making an appearance there! Mimi says she’s been working with private detectives to track his movements and hopefully put him away. This is 100% not realistic at all, but let’s overlook that. Mimi says that Buzz is rumored to be so good at selling drugs that he can even get kids who’ve never had a sip of beer to try something dangerous! Mimi says that if they know anyone who plans to be at the party, they should warn them. Bruce says he needs to call Regina. Amy isn’t happy about this but doesn’t say anything because she knows objecting would make her look bad.
Bruce calls Regina and asks how well she knows Justin. Regina says it doesn’t matter; she thought she knew Bruce, and look what he ended up doing! He says that’s fair enough but that he’s heard rumors about Molly’s party and doesn’t want her to go. She tells him that she can take care of herself and hangs up.
On Saturday, Jess tells Liz that Amy told her that there’s rumored to be a drug dealer appearing at Molly’s party that night! Neither twin is going, nor were they invited (they’re going to Lila’s to watch movies), but they both know Regina is planning to go with Justin. Liz hurriedly calls Regina. When Regina picks up, Liz apologizes for their “misunderstanding,” which is a gross understatement. Regina tells her not to worry about it. Liz says she’s glad that Regina isn’t mad at her anymore since that means she won’t get mad when Liz tells her that there are going to be drugs at Molly’s party that night! Liz says she’s sure Justin is a nice guy but that Regina doesn’t know him or Molly or Molly’s no-good friend Jan very well and that a drug dealer named Buzz is supposed to show up at the party with cocaine and speed! Regina gets annoyed and tells Liz she appreciates her concern (she does not) and that she knows Justin better than Liz does.
Regina feels awful after Liz’s call. She knows that Liz was trying to help and that she would have done the same thing if the situation were reversed. She talks to Justin, who tells Regina that he doesn’t think there’s anything to worry about. He thinks it’s unlikely that Buzz will shows up, and if he does, they just have to ignore him. Justin’s more worried about Molly, who he thinks will do drugs. It’s clear that he’s still in love with her. Regina tells him it’s stupid that they broke up because he’s worried about Molly; Regina thinks he should have stayed together with Molly and fought for her. I disagree with this advice. Why would you want to stay with someone who makes dangerous choices you vehemently disagree with? Justin tells Regina she’s a good friend and they head to the party.
Liz still doesn’t know what to do. She calls Nicholas, Regina’s brother, and tells him about the rumors that there will be drugs at the party. Nicholas can’t believe what he’s hearing and says he’s going to collect Regina from the party and bring her home. He can’t find his wallet, so he takes off without it and of course gets pulled over for speeding. Nicholas says it’s an emergency and that his sister’s in danger; they tell him he can share the whole story down at the station because they’re hauling him in!
Justin and Regina arrive at Molly’s. The house is dark and smells like beer and cigarettes. How do they expect to get these smells out of the house by the time Molly’s mom gets home so she won’t know about the party? It sounds like this party is an annual event, so either they have some kind of system worked out or Molly’s mom is just that dumb. Molly greets Justin with a kiss that’s more than friendly and drags him off to dance. Regina doesn’t know what to do, so she sips on the beer that someone gives her. Jan Brown appears and snidely says she heard that Regina doesn’t even drink or do drugs. It’s very clear that Jan is a terrible person and that if she ODs at this party, the reader would cheer. The doorbell rings, and Molly announces that Buzz has arrived!
At the police station, Nicholas tells the cops about the party Regina’s at and how there’s supposed to be drugs there! The cops say Nicholas is for sure getting a ticket for speeding and driving without a license, but they decide that they should check out the party house too, just to see if he’s right.
Regina goes into a bedroom to get her coat. In the room, she finds some girls smoking, including Molly and Jan. Jan asks if Regina’s been busy stealing Molly’s boyfriend, and Regina says she’s just friends with Justin and that he loves Molly. Just then, Molly’s younger brother, Ty, comes in to say that Buzz is getting out the good stuff and they should hurry so they don’t miss out!
Regina tries to leave while everyone waits for Buzz to dole out his drugs. Jan says Regina looks like she needs some drugs to pick her up. Regina tells Justin she wants to go, and Justin says he can’t leave Molly while Buzz is here because while cocaine is one thing (is it???), he’s afraid that Buzz is going to get her to try heroin! What a train wreck of a relationship. He needs to leave and let Molly’s problems be Molly’s problems.
Buzz cuts cocaine into thin lines while everyone watches. Molly tells Regina that cocaine is the most amazing thing ever and that it’s not addicting; it just makes you feel great! Jan says not to waste any on Regina because the only thing she’s good for is stealing boyfriends. Regina wants them to shut up, so she announces that she wants to try it. Buzz tells her how to snort it, and Regina does. She says she doesn’t feel anything, and Molly says she should do a second line. Regina obliges and then asks what the noise is. No one else hears a noise. She says her chest hurts, and Justin confirms that her pulse is really fast and that Regina’s probably hearing her heartbeat. Justin thinks she’s about to pass out and says they should call the cops. Buzz asks if he’s crazy. Just then, the front door bursts open and two cops and Nicholas Morrow race through!
The cops call an ambulance and say Regina’s having trouble breathing and needs oxygen. Molly says they didn’t mean for anything to happen. (Oh sure, now she’s sorry….) Regina faintly says to Nicholas that she wants to see Liz and Bruce.
Liz and Bruce are at Lila’s, watching movies with a group (why is Lila inviting Liz or Bruce to a smallish gathering?), when they get the call from Nicholas. Liz quickly tells everyone there what’s happening and then they race to the hospital. When they arrive, Nicholas says that the doctors don’t think Regina’s going to make it. Sure enough, a doctor comes out and tells them it’s such a tragic waste: Regina has died! They don’t know exactly what happened, but the doctor confirms she took a “lethal amount of cocaine” and experienced a rare reaction that lead to cardiac failure. This might have been made worse by an undiagnosed heart murmur.
No one can believe that Regina’s actually gone. At school the next week, Justin and Molly are absent, and everyone stays away from Jan and her friends. Bruce keeps saying he wants to kill Justin and his friends, and Liz feels the same. Everyone agrees they’re never going to try cocaine after this and that they didn’t know it could be so dangerous. The principal calls an assembly, during which he says that condolences can be sent to the drug rehabilitation program at Fowler Memorial Hospital, that there will be a memorial for Regina on Friday in the auditorium, and that no one should be held responsible for Regina’s death.
Tuesday afternoon, Liz is shocked to see a letter from Regina has arrived in the mail! Apparently Regina wrote her a letter after their call on Saturday, saying it was too hard to say over the phone but that Liz has been a good friend and that she knows Liz just wanted to protect her by warning her about the party. She also says that she’s realizes that if things were perfect between herself and Bruce, no one (including Amy) would have been able to break them up, so that wasn’t something to be mad at Liz about either. She says she hopes they can be friends forever. Liz tears up. This posthumous letter is something I remember so vividly from reading this book as a kid! In reality, it made no sense for Regina to have written a letter. But wow, what a scene!
Liz and Nicholas speak at Regina’s memorial. Liz was unable to write a good speech, so she just speaks from her heart and it’s perfect (of course). Nicholas reads a poem. Justin’s in the audience; it’s the first day he’s been at school that week and he looks awful. Molly’s also there and tries to talk to him before he leaves, but he refuses.
Up next: Will anyone ever talk to Molly Hecht again? (Better question: does anyone care? I know I don’t…)