The Moral of the Story: Your old BFF’s new BFF is probably a bitch.
The Big Deal: Jessica throws a dance to celebrate the end of the first week of camp. Nothing much happens there.
Synopsis:
The gang is off to be junior counselors at Camp Echo Mountain in Montana. This summer camp focuses on drama type stuff, so Jessica is psyched to go because she’s sure she’ll be discovered somehow, and Liz is sure she’ll be chosen to write the play the camp will put on. Liz is also excited because her friend Maria Slater (not Maria Santelli, as I misread it a few times) is going to be there. I believe Maria was in the Sweet Valley Twins books. She was a child actor and was good friends with Liz because she wanted to get out of acting and start writing. She can’t wait to see Liz again and introduce her to her new best friend, Nicole Banes. Liz arrives at camp first and decides she’ll just take the cabin’s only desk so she can work on the play. Then Nicole arrives and starts throwing Liz’s crap on her bed, saying she needs the desk to write the play. Liz, not accustomed to having competition, hates Nicole immediately.
Jessica is assigned to the youngest kids and she’s a little worried since she’s not very good with kids. She can’t believe it when the girls love her and listen to everything she says. They’re actually a little creepy. One of them tries to bleach her hair blond so she can look just like Jessica. Another girl, Maggie, carries a video camera with her everywhere and records everything Jessica does. Jessica still isn’t over Christian or Ken, so she’s decided to make her summer boy-free. This works out well until she meets the teenage brother of one of her campers. His name is Paul and he of course falls in love with Jessica the second he lays eyes on her.
Lila is in love with Bo, one of the male counselors. Bo is an adventure seeker and is always telling stories about the mountains he’s climbed and rivers he’s rafted. Lila tries to make herself seem braver and more adventurous than she really is and it’s clear to us that Bo is a phony, but Lila has no idea and gets upset when Bo won’t sneak over to the girls’ cabin after dark to see her. He finally comes clean and tells Lila he’s really a coward and the son of a millionaire. Lila tells Bo the truth about herself and they make out for a while. Hey, whatever happened to Robby?
Liz is having a rough time at camp. She’s been staying up really late every night to write her play, her campers hate her, Nicole is horrible and Joey, the drama counselor Liz has fallen in love with (Todd’s not around, so you know Liz is about to cheat), seems to like Nicole better than her. Liz finishes writing her play, but the disk disappears before she can show it to Joey. Then she finds out Nicole has stolen it and is passing off the work as her own. She makes a scene, but nobody believes her and she ends up looking like an ass. Neither Maria nor Joey wants anything to do with her and Nicole just gloats about it.
Jessica is pining for Paul. She remembers that Maggie caught them on tape when he came up to the camp one day to pick up his sister. She finds Maggie’s tape and watches that scene over and over again. Then she watches the rest of the tape and sees Nicole taunting Liz about the stolen play. Jessica calls everyone to the main lodge and shows them the tape. Liz is vindicated, Maria is her friend again and Joey goes ahead and falls in love with her. He’s heard about Todd so he asks Liz what the deal is. She lies and says they’re free to date other people. Then Todd shows up just as Liz and Joey are walking around holding hands and laughing. Liz immediately drops Joey’s hand and starts to panic.
Quotes:
“I’ve always felt like something’s been missing from my life since she moved away,” Elizabeth continued in a pensive tone, gazing out of the car’s windshield at the night sky.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be more like Maria,” Todd said in a flat voice.
That’s right, folks. Todd is jealous of Maria. This is such a dysfunctional couple.
Jessica watched her sister lie down and close her eyes. The world’s most faithful girlfriend, Elizabeth usually wasn’t so easily flustered by another guy.
The Cover: Ooh, look at those bitchfaces on Nicole and Liz as they stare each other down over Maria. I recognize Jessica and her fucked up looking kids, but I don’t know who those boys are and I don’t care.
I’m starting to get defensive of the Wakefields whenever a newcomer is a b$%#*. I’d rather it be Lila feuding with them. Or Amy.
Awesome! So Liz gets busted cheating!!!
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Shannon Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 3:30 pm
Not really busted so much as almost busted. You’ll see tomorrow. *heavy sigh*
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I was kind of hoping Elizabeth would take on her rival in an abandoned warehouse, SVH gangster style!
What happened to Enid? Is she no longer Liz’s BFF?
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Shannon Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 3:29 pm
Oh, Enid just couldn’t go to summer camp I guess. From here on out, Enid and Maria are Liz’s two best friends.
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World’s most faithful girlfriend? Is that meant to be tongue in cheek?
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Shannon Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
I sure hope so.
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Karla Reply:
January 13th, 2010 at 7:39 pm
Ah, but which cheek? Oh, I need help.
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I love that Nicole is basically a huge bitch for no reason. Because no one has any right or reason to hate a Wakefield!
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Shannon Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 4:47 pm
Well, it looks like I totally forgot to mention that Maria is moving back to Sweet Valley. Nicole’s feeling all emo about it because she doesn’t really have any other friends (imagine that).
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Abby Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 8:50 am
I think it sucks that no one can compete with a Wakefield without being a complete bitch, because god forbid the reader feel sorry for the girl when one of the Wakefields smokes the competition with her super special awesomeness. Has there EVER been a rival to one of the twins who wasn’t a skanky brat? I can think of a few instances where Jessica and Elizabeth were competing against each other for a guy (or for a role in a middle school play), and Liz always won. But has a non Wakefield ever won anything?
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Shannon Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 9:24 am
Well, hmmm… Enid gets the guy every once in a while. That’s always funny. Other than that, I can’t think of a time when a non Wakefield won against a Wakefield.
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What is with this Maria chick? Why is everyone so hung up on her?! Does she have beer flavored nipples or something? (Heh.)
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Shannon Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
I LOVE you for this!
Aw, RIP, Heath.
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Children of the 90s Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 4:51 pm
10 Things reference FTW!
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I think Bo was my second-favourite Lila boyfriend. He was kinda like the pre-Bruce. Although I remember reading these later books at the same time as SVU, and was under the impression (for a loooong time) that Lila and Bruce were together here as well. I was wondering why they both seemed to be ignoring each other all the time…
I also have to wonder why they needed another Maria S. I mean, really — is it that hard to think of another name? And she doesn’t even do anything of importance until Senior Year. At least Santelli provides Winston with some much-needed lovin’.
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Shannon Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 9:37 pm
I love Bo and Lila together because they’re both so rich and snobby.
Do Lila and Bruce get together in SVU? Weird.
I hate that there’s another Maria S. How silly.
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Lorelai Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 9:55 pm
Yes, Bruce and Lila get together and become the biggest superpower the world has ever known. It’s positively the most awesome pairing in the history of the universe. I don’t want to spoil anything for you, but the way they get together involves a plane crash and Lila catching fish with her bare hands while naked. That’s all I’ll say…
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Shannon Reply:
November 9th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
Hmmm, sounds intriguing!
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Sandy Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 10:24 am
OMG! Bruce and Lila like a Brangelina power couple?!?! Can’t wait!!!
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Hey Sharon. For the record, Maria Slater was in Sweet valley’s Twins and also the Unicorn book. She was a Hollywood child so to speak. Maria and Elizabeth were both in the exclusive Unicorns club of the Middle School, how the fuck they can kill a good girl’s club from junior high to put in lame Pi Beta alpha is beyond me. Then the revised SV calls it ‘the beauties!’ Who the fuck thinks of these names? They should’ve called the sorority club Unicorns forever.
So now the twins are in a summer camp? Are they still 16? How can that be if their birthday if I remember is June 13?
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Shannon Reply:
November 10th, 2009 at 8:55 am
Who is Sharon?
Yeah, I was pretty sure Maria was from SVT.
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I miss Twins and Unicorns…I read a funny Twins book called THE GOSSIP war that involved 3 way calling when ellen Riteman’s father cooked a hot dog so long, it tasted like dust to Mandy Miller and Jessica made it out that Mr. Riteman gave Mandy food poisoning, and the way the story was told was like watching Green Acres as it all came together. Anyway, read the SV Twins the Gossip War when even 3-way phone calling can merit a disaster!
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I wonder if Elizabeth and Maria share the same sleeping bag? Never know! Then again, that could be problematic for the young fan to read into. Still, has to be a drag that poor Enid can’t go to camp. I wonder if Enid and Amy got together as BFs?
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Jenna Reply:
November 11th, 2009 at 1:04 am
It may also be problematic for anyone that reads too much into Sweet Valley High books and imagines they are real people.
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Also, take note, by SV 135, Lila and Bo have a huge kiss off so to speak that’ll involve fire and a fling with Steven Wakefield. Won’t give anything else away in the 3 part story. But if you do notice when you look at the covering, you’ll see the characters are from the TV series of Sweet valley.
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Oh, Lila, I’m a wee bit disappointed in you here.
Everyone ever in Sweet Valley (aside from Lila) makes me want to stab a pen into my brain.
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It’s like the twins switched places, you got Jessica the loving twin and Elizabeth acting like a bitch like Jessica would! It’s funny how ghost writers switch them around for no reason. That’s funny to have Elizabeth and Nicole at it….I still feel Nicole was paid by Veronica Brooks just to be a bitch to Liz.
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