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    Glitter & Doom
    Glitter & Doom
    Glitter & Doom
    Ebook64 pages1 hour

    Glitter & Doom

    By Bethany Griffin

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    A 50-page, digital-only novella set in the world of Bethany Griffin's dark and haunting retelling of the classic Edgar Allan Poe story Masque of the Red Death. When a rich teenage girl who spends her nights in the most desirable club and a smart, young inventor meet, they might have more in common than they know.

    April, niece to the dying city's cruel dictator, is Araby Worth's glittery and frivolous best friend. But she's more than she appears. And when she disappeared in Masque of the Red Death, where did she go? This short novella answers that question, taking us deep underneath the crumbling city, where April crosses paths with Kent, the serious young inventor who is key to rebellion. Glitter & Doom is a story of chilling action, of spies, and of surprising love. Can love be anything but doomed is a city that's burning down around its survivors?

    A dark, unnerving story about two of the most fascinating characters from Masque of the Red Death.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateMar 26, 2013
    ISBN9780062225665
    Glitter & Doom
    Author

    Bethany Griffin

    Bethany Griffin is the author of Masque of the Red Death. She is a high school English teacher who prides herself on attracting creative misfits to elective classes like Young Adult Literature, Creative Writing, and Speculative Literature. She lives with her family in Kentucky.

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    Reviews for Glitter & Doom

    3.5/5

    16 ratings4 reviews

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    • 4/5
      This is a short story that takes place between the two Masque of the Red Death books. It’s been a while since I read this series and I kind of forgot I had this short story on my Kindle. It was fun to go back and revisit this world.The story follows April as she and Kent meet again and work to help bring down April’s evil uncle Prospero. This is some background at the beginning about April’s childhood and a glimpse that the first time she meet Kent. The novella is told in two parts first from April and then from Kent. It was fun to go back and revisit this world and get some information filled in on where April disappeared to and some background on how she met Kent. It adds some to the story but not a lot. It’s does help you relate to Kent better though. It was also interesting to see Araby and Will’s relationship from Kent’s POV.This isn’t really a novella I would recommend reading as a stand alone, but if you are a fan of the Masque of the Red Death series this does provide some nice background and fills out Kent’s story nicely. Overall this was a fun read and provides some good background on April and Kent. I would recommend if you are a fan of the Masque of the Red Death series and want a little more of that world. This was an excellent series overall and I highly recommend it.
    • 4/5
      This is just a short bridge between Masque of the Red Death and Dance of the Red Death, so there really isn't a lot of necessary information in this book (having not read Dance yet, this is an assumption, but I'd be surprised if there was something vital to the overall story in this novella). What we have here, though, are a couple of scenes seen through April's eyes, so it's interesting to get her perspective on what's going on around her. I am anxious to get to Dance of the Red Death. These books constantly surprise me by how much I enjoy them!
    • 4/5
      A short novella, "Glitter & Doom" is told through April's eyes. The first section takes place when April is 11 and Elliott is 13, and they are "living" (or being held prisoner) in their uncle's castle after the "death" (those who have read Masque of the Red Death will know why that is in quotation marks) of their father. A little more about their father's murder, and exactly who was present at the time of it, is revealed.Prince Prospero is attempting to teach his young nephew the fine art of torture, but Elliott is a less-than-willing pupil. Although what happened was mentioned in Masque of the Red Death, it's much different to "see" what is occurring through an eleven-year-old's eyes. It's amazing that Elliott isn't a complete sociopath by the time he meets Araby (well, maybe he is...I guess that remains to be seen). The second section of the book details what happens when April is abducted from the Debauchery Club. Another character who only makes a few brief appearances in Masque of the Red Death, Kent, has a fairly prominent role to play in events that happen in the latter part of that book. There's not a ton of new information here, but it is interesting to have a few fill-in scenes. It whets the appetite for Dance of the Red Death (this ebook also includes a small preview of that book).
    • 3/5
      I don't really know what to say about this one. I mean, it provides a nice bridge between the two books, but other than that, I don't know that it was really necessary. Obviously I may change my opinion on that once I read [book:Dance of the Red Death|13599291], and if so I shall update this review space. But right now? I'm just sort of "eh" about it.I did like the background it provides on both April and Elliot, though, since I liked that glimpse into what makes Elliot tick. You got these glimmers of insight into Elliot through his interactions with Araby in the first book, but otherwise he was difficult to read. Perhaps this novella will make him less so? Time will tell.

    Book preview

    Glitter & Doom - Bethany Griffin

    Contents

    Glitter

    Doom

    Excerpt from Dance of the Red Death

    Chapter One

    About the Author

    Back Ad

    Copyright

    About the Publisher

    GLITTER

    "BE PRETTY, HER MOTHER SAID, REARRANGING April’s frilly skirts. Keep your eyes wide and innocent. It’s the only thing that might protect you."

    The way her mother’s voice trembled made April shaky herself, and she wanted to feel like a princess in this dress. So she ignored the warning, pushing her carefully curled gold hair back, and not making the slightest effort to keep her eyes wide. She left their shared rooms, a royal prison within her uncle’s palace, and as she skipped to the indoor garden at the base of the tower, she enjoyed the way her skirts swirled around her. She was eleven years old.

    You look nice, Elliott said from an alcove.

    April frowned. Her brother had just turned thirteen and was prone to teasing. Except that, since their father had died, neither of them had the energy. Grief was exhausting. So was fear.

    A little brown monkey swung down from the rafters and onto Elliott’s lap. It wore a tiny vest made of silk brocade. Charmed, she reached out, but the creature bared its teeth at her, hissing. Then it nestled into Elliott’s chest, looking up at him with big eyes—the sort of expression Mother had just encouraged April to present.

    Elliott slipped something from his pocket and fed it to the monkey.

    No wonder he likes you better. April heard the sourness in her voice, and hated herself for it. But the way the monkey curled against her brother made her jealous. Neither of them had ever had a pet, something to love them unconditionally.

    Their mother swept down the staircase.

    For goodness’ sake, don’t get dirty, she chastised, dusting April’s skirts. Uncle has always been fond of you. He won’t hurt a pretty little girl.

    It might be true. Of the many people April had seen her uncle harm, none of them had been little girls.

    Mother handed April specially made white gloves with pearl buttons.

    Elliott watched from his alcove, and April felt a spiteful bit of happiness. The monkey might prefer Elliott’s company, but Mother had barely looked at him in the months since Father died.

    Mother knew, somehow, that Elliott had seen what happened. That he’d hidden and hadn’t done anything to stop Uncle Prospero from murdering Father. Only Elliott knew that April had been beside him the entire time and so far he hadn’t told anyone. She didn’t think he ever would.

    Her happiness faded though at the lost expression in her brother’s eyes. Unlike Uncle and Mother, their father had never played favorites. April ached for the past. For the safety of Father and the world before the plague. The world before they’d been brought to Uncle Prospero’s castle, where no one spoke of the disease, but everyone carried handkerchiefs filled with herbs that were supposed to prevent the illness.

    Mother led April into the throne room, a shadowy place stained by torture and fear, still fussing over her appearance. When Uncle walked down the aisle to his raised dais, his eyes swept over them. He smiled vaguely but didn’t stop. Elliott followed their uncle. Mother let out a hiss, so low that only April and a few courtiers near them heard it, when she saw that he was dressed identically to Uncle Prospero in a black suit with an impeccable white shirt. Uncle kept his launderers working constantly. White shirts were easily stained, especially by blood.

    April didn’t usually watch the onstage cruelty that passed for entertainment in the throne room. Mother encouraged her to look subtly away, but never to cry because that might draw attention.

    Guards dragged in a boy and a man through the crowd to where her uncle was waiting. They stumbled up the steps to the dais. The boy wore spectacles with glass so thick that it magnified his eyes. April hadn’t spoken to another child in ages, not since Elliott had disastrously befriended one of the kitchen boys. She might have smiled as the boy on the dais now looked around the throne room with his enormous eyes, but her face was frozen. Chills ran through her at the memory of what had happened to the kitchen boy.

    Prospero found it amusing to instruct Elliott in the

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