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the_oracleAll Night Long
Is Jessica as grown-up as she thinks she is?
Has Jessica gone too far?
Elizabeth Wakefield knows her beautiful twin can handle almost any guy- most boys are just no match for Jessica's seductive charms. But Scott Daniels, Jessica's latest love, is more of a man than a boy, much older and much more experienced than anyone Jessica's ever dated.
When Jessica sneaks off to a college beach party with Scott, Elizabeth's afraid of what could happen. And when her twin isn't back by morning, Elizabeth's fear turns to alarm. Where's Jessica? Why has she stayed out all night long?
Let's get one thing clear. The best part of this book has absolutely nothing to do with the actual story, or the porntastic cover. Nope, the best part are the character profiles in the back of the book. Sure, nothing is ever said on Lila's paternity again, although The Fowlers of Sweet Valley makes it clear that they definitely abandoned the theory that George isn't Lila's biological father, but at the time? Awesome. The bit on Bill Chase was also interesting, since it'll be another three books before we even touch Bill again. [Dirty!]
Which, I suppose is something I should mention before we get to the fun stuff. The early SVH books were actually pretty big on foreshadowing. Todd's bike lust is mentioned three books before it actually comes into play, Elizabeth's erratic behavior is previewed in this book, even Dana Larson's distaste for guys in general is brought up, although that's more of a character trait, I s'pose, though it is one they use for at least two different books and their central plots. Sure, they really step it up for the last couple of pages of each book, hitting you upside the head with the basic plot for the next book, but the seeds have been planted more than a book or two in advance, and I can get behind that.
Now, on to the fun stuff.
All Night Long isn't exactly what you'd expect and yet, at the same time, it's exactly what you'd expect. At the end of Power Play, Jessica's spending all her free time down at the Cove, where the college kids hang out when they aren't throwing wild pajama parties with mattresses instead of seating arrangements. Jess falls for Scott Daniels, and by the time ANL begins, Liz has met Scott. Liz is not exactly enamored of Scott and perhaps feels the same way I do about the creepy older men who come in drunk and hit on me. The exact feeling would be, "ICK, are you kidding me?" Only Liz knows that telling Jessica that Scott is as slimy as they come will do nothing but entice her baby sister. Instead, she says nothing, despite the fact that the guy is so obviously a creep that you know it simply by looking at the cover of the book. Go on, check 'im out. See the 'stache? Yeah, nothing says "...creeeeeeeepy" quite like that.
Jess is planning on sneaking out to see Scott, and he's going to drive her to a cookout at the lake. Liz was invited, but the Wakefield parents laughed until they cried and told the twins, "When hell freezes." Which does nothing to dissuade Jessica. Of course. So Jess sneaks out and Liz is left at home to cover for her. Things are going well enough, though Jessica knows she's out of her element, seeing as she's not stupid so much as very, very slow. Still, it's not until Scott gets a little too hands on that Jess realizes just how screwed she is. He obviously expected her to put out, she's not going to, and he's not taking her home because he's a) drunk and b) a bastard.
Now, welcome to the part I just don't understand. After Scott leaves her out in the woods and she finds her way back to their little love shack, Jess tries to sweet talk his keys out of him. She's obviously not afraid of the cops pulling her over or anything, as she's essentially asking to steal his car. He knows this and tells her no way. Minutes later, he passes out. Why, oh why, when she realized he was dead to the world, did she not steal his keys? If someone doesn't wake up when you shove a dirty sock in their mouth, they probably aren't gonna wake up until they're good and ready. Instead, she curls up and goes to sleep, or tries to anyway, on the floor.
I'm still not clear on how she got home, though I guess Scott or one of her friends took pity on her.
Anyway. While Jess is busy trying to avoid unwanted groping, Liz is busy freaking the hell out. First she wakes up and realizes her sister has stayed out all night long! Then she has to intercept Jessica's call so her parents won't find out about the missing twin. THEN she has to sneak around and pretend to be Jessica, which involves eating two breakfasts. Ha, I thought the Wakefields didn't overindulge. So, since she was Jessica last, she goes to school dressed as Jessica. Which means Enid snubs her initially and all Jessica's friends bug her. Magically, Todd can easily identify her, which is beyond sweet, actually.
For our entry in the "never seen nor heard from again" category, Jess and Liz are all set to be tour guides this summer. In order to do that, they have to take this test, which apparently the school is giving. I know, weird, right? Liz has hers first period and does relatively well. Cuz she's Liz, guys. She's perfection. She's the teen dream. Deal with it. However, by the time Jessica's test rolls around, Jessica is still missing. Liz decides she'll take Jessica's test for her, but when she and Todd discuss this, things get really, really bad. Their first real argument blows up in their faces. It ain't pretty. Liz is a wreck and totally bombs Jessica's test. If she weren't cheating for Jessica, she'd get major sympathy. As it is, Enid takes her aside and tells her that things will be okay, and that she did the best she could under the circumstances.
Eventually Jessica shows up at school at the end of the day, but I guess she doesn't have a single class with Cara, Lila, or any of the cheerleaders, as you'd think they'd notice that she was absent all day despite seeing her in the hall. Also, Liz must not share any classes with Cara or Lila, because you'd think they'd notice when Liz showed up dressed as Jessica. Or maybe not. Maybe people just see that one twin is there and don't question which one it is. Who knows.
Jess blows up at Liz for bombing her test, so Liz goes to sulk out on the baseball field where she remembers the last time she was there, with Todd, and how they were watching the baseball tryouts and... I began to wonder, when exactly would those be? If they were together then, did we skip a bunch of time again, or do they hold tryouts in the fall so they can overwork their stars come spring training? Either way, it's finally getting a bit chilly in the Valley, and Liz is about to leave when Tall, Dark, and Steady comes over to not apologize. He declares a truce and Liz tells him he was right to be mad at her, and that she knew it at the time, which is why she was so upset. Again, realistic right up until the point where Todd mentions he has a sister and the audience from the future says, "NUH UH! Todd's an only child!"
They kiss and smooch and all is well.
Our B story is brought to you by Bill Chase. There's some surfing competition and everyone fully expects this dude Sonny to win. Lila drapes herself all over his board no less. Bill's been absent from school all week and everyone thinks the great surfing god is off licking his wounds. He shows up just in time to enter the competition, complete with Todd's board in tow. It seems Todd sold his board to Bill, which is how he had the extra cash to buy his cycle of DEATH, but more on that in the next book. Liz waxes poetic about Bill's grace and Bill totally stomps all over Sonny's ass. There's mention of a dude named Dink, and no, I didn't just make that up, and...
That's the book. Seriously. It goes by really fast and is held together by the thinest of threads.
Random Trivia:
Quote-able SVH:
Since when does Cara have a mustache and drive a red Firebird? - Liz, p2
Jessica probably just had too much to drink and passed out or something." She smiled to herself, thinking of the miserable hangover Jessica would be suffering as a result. - Enid, p52
Let's discuss the least of our worries first. I live in the South. I was raised in a neighborhood that was fairly well off and the only things they maintained within an inch of it's life for most of my childhood were the tennis courts. I now live down the street from the courts used by various high schools. I am not a tennis player, nor am I a fan of anything other than taking my bright yellow ball and slamming it into someone else's face. Thus, I couldn't tell you much about the game. However, I can tell you that the raging love affair this series has with tennis, Bruce in particular, is a little weird. I'm just saying...
Overall, I like this particular outing, leaps of brain numbing insanity aside. I like the fact that it concentrates mostly on Liz after Jessica's little interlude with Scott, and the fallout for Liz when she chooses to take responsibility for her twin's actions. I've been the good kid covering for the reckless one. I've had my arse tanned instead of theirs, and it's never fun. You don't get half the good rage you should because you CHOSE to step up for them and give them a way out of a situation they chose for themselves. I like that Liz resents this and knows full well what she's doing is wrong.
I like her fight with Todd and that Todd is big enough to come to her and say, hey, I wasn't wrong, but I don't want to dwell on this. I want to be with you and I'll learn to deal with your crazy antics, and yeah, maybe I was a bit harsh. Because of this, I suspect I had a huge fictional crush on Mr. Wilkins until they totally whipped him later on. As it is, he's still manly enough to seem interesting, but not so much that you wonder if Bruce lightened his hair and wore contacts just to screw with your head.
Again, the early books were not kind to Jessica. Which is okay, because she later becomes fantastic and Liz should look into suing for character assassination. Again, all in good time.
I'd scan the pages at the end that deal with Lila and Bill, but my scanner doesn't work with this computer. Must find a new one.
Not sure that either the French or Dutch covers are actually for All Night Long. The translation for the French one seems possible, and the Dutch one was yanked from an auction that appeared to be for 1-8, so...
Not that it matters, but I've always felt this is a totally classic Jessica look. It's kind of how I always pictured her. I ignore Scott for the most part. :P
Has Jessica gone too far?
Elizabeth Wakefield knows her beautiful twin can handle almost any guy- most boys are just no match for Jessica's seductive charms. But Scott Daniels, Jessica's latest love, is more of a man than a boy, much older and much more experienced than anyone Jessica's ever dated.
When Jessica sneaks off to a college beach party with Scott, Elizabeth's afraid of what could happen. And when her twin isn't back by morning, Elizabeth's fear turns to alarm. Where's Jessica? Why has she stayed out all night long?
Let's get one thing clear. The best part of this book has absolutely nothing to do with the actual story, or the porntastic cover. Nope, the best part are the character profiles in the back of the book. Sure, nothing is ever said on Lila's paternity again, although The Fowlers of Sweet Valley makes it clear that they definitely abandoned the theory that George isn't Lila's biological father, but at the time? Awesome. The bit on Bill Chase was also interesting, since it'll be another three books before we even touch Bill again. [Dirty!]
Which, I suppose is something I should mention before we get to the fun stuff. The early SVH books were actually pretty big on foreshadowing. Todd's bike lust is mentioned three books before it actually comes into play, Elizabeth's erratic behavior is previewed in this book, even Dana Larson's distaste for guys in general is brought up, although that's more of a character trait, I s'pose, though it is one they use for at least two different books and their central plots. Sure, they really step it up for the last couple of pages of each book, hitting you upside the head with the basic plot for the next book, but the seeds have been planted more than a book or two in advance, and I can get behind that.
Now, on to the fun stuff.
All Night Long isn't exactly what you'd expect and yet, at the same time, it's exactly what you'd expect. At the end of Power Play, Jessica's spending all her free time down at the Cove, where the college kids hang out when they aren't throwing wild pajama parties with mattresses instead of seating arrangements. Jess falls for Scott Daniels, and by the time ANL begins, Liz has met Scott. Liz is not exactly enamored of Scott and perhaps feels the same way I do about the creepy older men who come in drunk and hit on me. The exact feeling would be, "ICK, are you kidding me?" Only Liz knows that telling Jessica that Scott is as slimy as they come will do nothing but entice her baby sister. Instead, she says nothing, despite the fact that the guy is so obviously a creep that you know it simply by looking at the cover of the book. Go on, check 'im out. See the 'stache? Yeah, nothing says "...creeeeeeeepy" quite like that.
Jess is planning on sneaking out to see Scott, and he's going to drive her to a cookout at the lake. Liz was invited, but the Wakefield parents laughed until they cried and told the twins, "When hell freezes." Which does nothing to dissuade Jessica. Of course. So Jess sneaks out and Liz is left at home to cover for her. Things are going well enough, though Jessica knows she's out of her element, seeing as she's not stupid so much as very, very slow. Still, it's not until Scott gets a little too hands on that Jess realizes just how screwed she is. He obviously expected her to put out, she's not going to, and he's not taking her home because he's a) drunk and b) a bastard.
Now, welcome to the part I just don't understand. After Scott leaves her out in the woods and she finds her way back to their little love shack, Jess tries to sweet talk his keys out of him. She's obviously not afraid of the cops pulling her over or anything, as she's essentially asking to steal his car. He knows this and tells her no way. Minutes later, he passes out. Why, oh why, when she realized he was dead to the world, did she not steal his keys? If someone doesn't wake up when you shove a dirty sock in their mouth, they probably aren't gonna wake up until they're good and ready. Instead, she curls up and goes to sleep, or tries to anyway, on the floor.
I'm still not clear on how she got home, though I guess Scott or one of her friends took pity on her.
Anyway. While Jess is busy trying to avoid unwanted groping, Liz is busy freaking the hell out. First she wakes up and realizes her sister has stayed out all night long! Then she has to intercept Jessica's call so her parents won't find out about the missing twin. THEN she has to sneak around and pretend to be Jessica, which involves eating two breakfasts. Ha, I thought the Wakefields didn't overindulge. So, since she was Jessica last, she goes to school dressed as Jessica. Which means Enid snubs her initially and all Jessica's friends bug her. Magically, Todd can easily identify her, which is beyond sweet, actually.
For our entry in the "never seen nor heard from again" category, Jess and Liz are all set to be tour guides this summer. In order to do that, they have to take this test, which apparently the school is giving. I know, weird, right? Liz has hers first period and does relatively well. Cuz she's Liz, guys. She's perfection. She's the teen dream. Deal with it. However, by the time Jessica's test rolls around, Jessica is still missing. Liz decides she'll take Jessica's test for her, but when she and Todd discuss this, things get really, really bad. Their first real argument blows up in their faces. It ain't pretty. Liz is a wreck and totally bombs Jessica's test. If she weren't cheating for Jessica, she'd get major sympathy. As it is, Enid takes her aside and tells her that things will be okay, and that she did the best she could under the circumstances.
Eventually Jessica shows up at school at the end of the day, but I guess she doesn't have a single class with Cara, Lila, or any of the cheerleaders, as you'd think they'd notice that she was absent all day despite seeing her in the hall. Also, Liz must not share any classes with Cara or Lila, because you'd think they'd notice when Liz showed up dressed as Jessica. Or maybe not. Maybe people just see that one twin is there and don't question which one it is. Who knows.
Jess blows up at Liz for bombing her test, so Liz goes to sulk out on the baseball field where she remembers the last time she was there, with Todd, and how they were watching the baseball tryouts and... I began to wonder, when exactly would those be? If they were together then, did we skip a bunch of time again, or do they hold tryouts in the fall so they can overwork their stars come spring training? Either way, it's finally getting a bit chilly in the Valley, and Liz is about to leave when Tall, Dark, and Steady comes over to not apologize. He declares a truce and Liz tells him he was right to be mad at her, and that she knew it at the time, which is why she was so upset. Again, realistic right up until the point where Todd mentions he has a sister and the audience from the future says, "NUH UH! Todd's an only child!"
They kiss and smooch and all is well.
Our B story is brought to you by Bill Chase. There's some surfing competition and everyone fully expects this dude Sonny to win. Lila drapes herself all over his board no less. Bill's been absent from school all week and everyone thinks the great surfing god is off licking his wounds. He shows up just in time to enter the competition, complete with Todd's board in tow. It seems Todd sold his board to Bill, which is how he had the extra cash to buy his cycle of DEATH, but more on that in the next book. Liz waxes poetic about Bill's grace and Bill totally stomps all over Sonny's ass. There's mention of a dude named Dink, and no, I didn't just make that up, and...
That's the book. Seriously. It goes by really fast and is held together by the thinest of threads.
Random Trivia:
- Liz favors hot dogs dripping with chili.
- Jess apparently had a guinea pig when she was younger.
- Also, Jess [and Liz, I suppose] was a girl scout briefly, but then Jess dropped out.
- ANL brings us underage drinking and more drugs, in case you like to know these things. Also, Enid seems to believe that Jess would drink enough beer to get a wicked hangover and this thought cheers her immensely.
- Gasp! Actual profanity is used in the form of "Damn." Jess spends a moment damning everyone. But not necessarily to hell, alas.
- Alice Wakefield goes running every morning, which is how she stays so bee-yuu-tiii-ful.
- Jess and Liz both love pancakes.
- Liz isn't big on PDA, although quick smooches are okay.
- By now, Bruce has forgiven the pizza and soda dumping and is actually trying to get back on Jessica's good side. Weird.
- The Oracle is on the second floor of the school.
- Mr. Patman is the chairman of the school board, hence all the coverage of the various tennis meets.
- Jess refers to Ken Matthews as "Ken Doll" and this is apparently a running gag between the two of them.
- Enid loves her some trashy magazine goodness. I knew we loved Enid.
- In case you missed it, Todd is claiming he has a sister now.
- Also, Todd seems to have at least a passing acquaintance with surfing, seeing as he sold his board to Bill Chase and was excited to see it used in the competition.
- As a parting gift from Scott, Jess came down with a raging case of
syphilispoison oak.
Quote-able SVH:
Since when does Cara have a mustache and drive a red Firebird? - Liz, p2
"She believed you?"
"Why shouldn't she? Is this the face of a liar?
"Yes!" Liz/Jess, p6
"Why shouldn't she? Is this the face of a liar?
"Yes!" Liz/Jess, p6
Jessica probably just had too much to drink and passed out or something." She smiled to herself, thinking of the miserable hangover Jessica would be suffering as a result. - Enid, p52
Let's discuss the least of our worries first. I live in the South. I was raised in a neighborhood that was fairly well off and the only things they maintained within an inch of it's life for most of my childhood were the tennis courts. I now live down the street from the courts used by various high schools. I am not a tennis player, nor am I a fan of anything other than taking my bright yellow ball and slamming it into someone else's face. Thus, I couldn't tell you much about the game. However, I can tell you that the raging love affair this series has with tennis, Bruce in particular, is a little weird. I'm just saying...
Overall, I like this particular outing, leaps of brain numbing insanity aside. I like the fact that it concentrates mostly on Liz after Jessica's little interlude with Scott, and the fallout for Liz when she chooses to take responsibility for her twin's actions. I've been the good kid covering for the reckless one. I've had my arse tanned instead of theirs, and it's never fun. You don't get half the good rage you should because you CHOSE to step up for them and give them a way out of a situation they chose for themselves. I like that Liz resents this and knows full well what she's doing is wrong.
I like her fight with Todd and that Todd is big enough to come to her and say, hey, I wasn't wrong, but I don't want to dwell on this. I want to be with you and I'll learn to deal with your crazy antics, and yeah, maybe I was a bit harsh. Because of this, I suspect I had a huge fictional crush on Mr. Wilkins until they totally whipped him later on. As it is, he's still manly enough to seem interesting, but not so much that you wonder if Bruce lightened his hair and wore contacts just to screw with your head.
Again, the early books were not kind to Jessica. Which is okay, because she later becomes fantastic and Liz should look into suing for character assassination. Again, all in good time.
I'd scan the pages at the end that deal with Lila and Bill, but my scanner doesn't work with this computer. Must find a new one.
Not sure that either the French or Dutch covers are actually for All Night Long. The translation for the French one seems possible, and the Dutch one was yanked from an auction that appeared to be for 1-8, so...
Not that it matters, but I've always felt this is a totally classic Jessica look. It's kind of how I always pictured her. I ignore Scott for the most part. :P
