"Seeds of Yesterday" is the final saga of Cathy and Chris from the "Flowers in the Attic" series and the characters have come full circle in this novel.

It is now many years after the end of "If There Be Thorns". Cathy is fifty-two and Chris is fifty-four. Jory has grown up to marry his childhood sweetheart, Melodie, and both have become successful dancers. Bart has just graduated from Harvard Law School and although, as Cathy points out, his psychiatrists have declared him "cured", it quickly becomes evident that Bart is still suffering from some pretty serious issues. Corinne, Cathy and Chris' mother, has left Bart the rebuilt Foxworth Hall, which Bart plans to reopen and make the grandest home in Virginia.
Cathy and Chris have arrived, to live once again, forty years later, in Foxworth Hall. You would think they would immediately realize that this may not be the best idea, if for no other reason that their mental health, but no, they come for a fairly long visit.

Jory and Melodie come for a visit, along with Cindy (Chris and Cathy's adopted daughter from "Thorns") and their long presumed dead Uncle Joel Foxworth shows up - - much as John Amos Jackson did in "Thorns". Joel's only purpose seems to be to spout off Malcolm-like pseudo-religious vitrol - - why no one tells him to pack his bags and get the hell out is beyond me.

Although this story is told again from the perspective of Cathy, and feels much more comfortable than the narrative of "Thorns", Bart again seems depraved and warped. It's hard to have sympathy for a character that seems so unredeemable.

Chris and Cathy's love story continues and is as bittersweet and tender as ever. Their love seems genuine and real. As does Jory's love for Melodie. His eventual anguish over being paralyzed, losing his career and eventually his wife are the only parts of this story (other than Chris and Cathy) that ring true.

The rest of the story feels forced and the characters very one dimensional. Can Bart be any more like Malcolm? Can Joel be any more like the Grandmother? Can Cindy be any more like a young Corinne or Cathy? Even Jory and Melodie have blond twins, a boy and a girl - - giving us visions of Cory and Carrie.

Reading the story you wonder how much grief and anguish one family can take. And why everyone seems to be stepping around Bart and making excuses for him. You get to the point where you wish Chris or Cathy would just knock his lights out.

This book is worthy to read as a conclusion to the Dollanganger saga - - although the ending is a bit rushed and Chris and Cathy's demises are tragically sad.

Definitely does not compare to "Flowers" or "Petals" but as good as, if not slightly better than, "Thorns". ( )

This book was very moving, I couldn't tell you how many times I've read the end because it was so well written. ( )

Cathy and Chris, haunted by the tragedies and sins of the past, return at last to Foxworth Hall, where they were hidden long ago. Despite every endeavour, they find that they are prisoners of a past they cannot escape and the past comes back to prey upon them once more.

I didn't find this book necessary. There wasn't much of a story, and at this point, it seems like Catherine is not directly involved in any of the events going on around her. She's merely watching from a distance. ( )

The fourth book in the "Flowers in the Attic" Series. ( )