Dance of the Red Death

Masque of the Red Death #2

by Bethany Griffin

Bethany Griffin continues the journey of Araby Worth in Dance of the Red Death—the sequel to her teen novel Masque of the Red Death.

In Dance of the Red Death, Araby’s world is in shambles—betrayal, death, disease, and evil forces surround her. She has no one to trust. But she finds herself and discovers that she will fight for the people she loves, and for her city.

Her revenge will take place at the menacing masked ball, though it could destroy her and everyone she loves…or it could turn her into a hero.

With a nod to Edgar Allan Poe, Bethany Griffin concludes her tragic and mysterious Red Death series with a heroine that young adult readers will never forget.

Genres: Young Adult, Steampunk, Dystopia, Romance, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Retellings

327 pages, Hardcover

First published April 4, 2013

About the author

Bethany Griffin teaches high school English and creative writing.

Reviews

[Annabelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Biggest disappointment I've had in a long time, so much so that I scanned more than read the last 20%. Absolutely worse than book one and the destroyer of my hopes. Review to come.

---

Ohmygod, I'm going all fangirl, but I just love that title! It has the word "dance" in it, after all, and it sounds so hopelessly intriguing!

I am Team Elliott all the way, and can't wait to see more of him and his gorgeousness in this book :)

[Nicole]

Really, another year? I have like fifty books I'm waiting for. This is one of the ones I want the most. Come on... AHHHH. I NEED IT.

Wait, does that say CONCLUSION? This is the last book??? WHAT???
UPDATE: ERMAGERD LOOK AT THAT COVER. GORGEOUS. JUST GORGEOUS.

Oh, and I seriously can't pick which guy she should choose. I mean I was totally team Will, but then he had to go and betray her. Even though it was for a good reason. As morbid as this seems, I kind of want one of them to die so she will have an easier decision.
>.>
<.<
Wow, I really did just say that.

While we wait...you can check out my blog!!! http://niconut.wordpress.com/

[Stacia (the 2010 club) · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Isn't it wonderful, being in love?"
"No." It feels like the rope is back around my throat, cutting off my air supply.

I have at least one thing in common with Araby - her love story was choking me also.

What the heck happened with book 2? It was as if everything I found exciting and infectious (pun intended) about Masque of the Red Death was distorted and lacking this time around.

The love triangle didn't bother me before. In fact, I rather enjoyed it - because the story itself was not suffocated out by the love triangle. I wish I could say the same thing about Dance of the Red Death.

It took me well over half of the book before I was finally able to see the creepy Poe inspiration at work. When the story turned dark, it was dark, but GAH...it took so long to get there! I do admit to being impressed that the party scenes were on the money and held up well with the new spin, but the male posturing which came first was awkwardly embarrassing. Who let Edward and Jacob in here?

One of the personal notes that I took while reading : Araby, have you lost your damn mind?!?!? Yes, I did use all of that punctuation. She had bigger fish to fry and seemed forget that at key moments.

But there was a crocodile mention or two, which was appreciated.

Please excuse me if my feelings appear to be far more jumbled than they were when I took the time to write a proper review for book 1. If anything, this would reflect my overall view of how this duet ended : scrambled, bizarre, lovely at times, creepy at times....good enough, but it could have been so much better.

[Drcong O ' · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @57%

I read the first book and really enjoyed it despite not having a clue as to what was really happening, so I assumed I'd enjoy this. But tbh, I'm just sitting here in class saying what the fuck is actually happening, why does this this gross romance and love triangle exist, why are the characters fucking RETARTED AND DULL AS FUCK.

honestly, this is just plain Bad™

[Elsa Ehlers · Rating 3 out of 5]

WARNING: MAY CONTAIN ONE TINSY WINSY LITTLE SPOILER

DEARGAWD this book cover sure got on my nerves. Dont get me wrong, i absolutely LOVED the first book. I'm a total Team Elliot, even though he was a little creepy in the beginning. (-_- dont judge.)
Still, he wouldnt sacrafice the girl he loves to a mad man who wanted to kill her *cough cough* WILL *cough*

ok, back to my first point..sorry Elliot *stage whispers* I'll see you in my dreams.

THE COVER PROS AND CONS:

PRO
-you can't see the girls face, which I like. It gives you a chance to imagine her in you're own way. Thumbs up Bethany Griffin.
-The black fan makes everything just a little more....whats the word im looking for? oh yeah, AWESOME.
- I really like her hair in this one.

CON
-THE FRIGGIN MIST IS PURPLE. what the heck bethany? I'm pretty sure the title is Dance of the RED Death... yeah...RED
-the girls skin makes her look like a friggin vampire. don't go there bethany...dont you dare. -__-
- I was kinda hoping to see one of those masks they wear on the cover. I mean, in the description it does say that she's gonna go to a MASKED ball, am i right or am i right? It make me want to see one of those masks they breath through even more. sigh...i guess we cant have everything.

Despite my problems with the cover, I REALLY want to read this book. because everyone knows you SHOULDN'T judge a book by its cover. prove me right Bethany Griffins.

TEAM ELLIOT

[Krystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like this duology has really jumped around and is skint on details but I kind of loved it anyway?

WARNING: This review contains spoilers for the first book in the series.

Here's the plot: After narrowly escaping the city with their lives, Araby and her two competing lovers friends need to work out a game plan to stop Malcontent, take down Prospero and restore the city. Araby is intent on finding her father, who is the only one who can help April with her 'little problem'; Elliot is intent on his revolution; Will just wants to be loved is intent on protecting his loved ones. (*wink*)

This series seems almost to suffer from over editing. Normally I have the opposite problem but this jumped around so fast when I really just wanted to sit in some of these moments. I won't lie - I loved the love triangle (#TeamWill) and I wanted Araby to spend a little more time getting to know each of the boys, and let their true personalities shine. (Mostly I wanted more Will.) But this story is in a hurry to be told so things race along and if you're not paying close attention you are bound to miss a few things. It made me a little sad, but at the same time the whole atmosphere is kind of depressing so it's a good thing it didn't linger I suppose.

It's been such a strange experience reading these books during our pandemic (I read the first one earlier this year) because it's all about this plague running rampant, and the only protection from it is these special masks. No 1.5m for these kids, no. If you don't wear a mask, there's a high chance you're going to die. Thankfully, this virus is pretty evident so they know who to stay away from. But just interesting to be reading how the disease has spread and completely changed their way of life; this is a post-apocalyptic world where buildings and streets are in disrepair, dead bodies are a common sight and people are all kinds of desperate. Like I said, the whole atmosphere is kind of depressing.

Now, being based on Poe's The Masque of the Red Death, this one stays true to the source by finally taking us to that grand ball at Prospero's palace. This is very much where things completely stopped making sense to me, but I ran with it anyway because it was just a lot of random fun. Plus, Will. Haha. Can anyone guess my favourite character? :)

The Red Death is just as horrifying as in Poe's tale, but this story lacks the tension and drama of the former. Instead, it's almost anti-climatic. But the characters are fantastic and I just loved how spirited Araby was so I can't complain too much.

Basically, the story is a bit confusing and lacks real depth or substance, but the characters are a lot of fun and easy to fall in love with. Araby has some really interesting growth across the two novels, and her relationships - both with the two love interests, but also with her friends, family, and others - are fascinating to watch play out. She made a great heroine.

I feel like this series, while not jaw-droppingly brilliant, is still pretty underrated. It's a bit dark and probably not ideal for those feeling a lot of stress over Covid, but on the whole I do recommend it.

Did I mention Will has tattoos? <3

***

Review for Masque of the Red Death HERE

[RIN ಠ_ಠ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Such a disappointment. When I first read Masque of the Red Death last year I really liked it. It was incredibly atmospheric and the plague-ridden world was depressing and I was very much immersed in the story. It was everything this book was not, except for depressing. I don't know what happened but after 100 pages, barely anything was happening and the I felt that the characters were just going around in circles. Araby was so wishy-washy throughout the book and along with the rest of the cast, their characters just fell flat. :/

And I really don't get the whole motive behind Prospero and Malcontent's actions. WTF were they trying to accomplish??
---------------------------

10/10 update
DAT COVER!!! O.O

---------------------------

2013 has never been so far away.
Excuse me while I go build a time machine.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating is 3.5 stars -- This review is SPOILER-FREE for Masque of the Red Death.

In retrospect, reading Dance of the Red Death while I was sick may not have been my smartest idea. The wonderfully grotesque and dark atmosphere of the plague-ridden world in Masque of the Red Death was enough to send me a fit of countless chills, and I read Masque in a healthy state that was rather polarizing to the state in which I read Dance of the Red Death. Needless to say, I imagine, the atmosphere developed even more thoroughly in Dance of the Red Death made much more of an impact on me than it did in Masque, which was something I hadn't initially expected. While I had expected Griffin to maintain the same level of grotesque beauty (as contradictory as that may sound) she had developed in her world in Masque of the Red Death, that grotesque beauty was further expanded upon in Dance of the Red Death, and that, coupled with the fact that I read Dance while I was sick, made my reading experience feel that much more tangible, chilling, and immersing than I could have ever imagined it being.

One of my favorite things about these two novels and the world in which they take place is that Bethany Griffin doesn't shy away from the gory, disturbing, and often heartbreaking details that would inevitably be prominent should the world undergo such a drastic plague as the one in Masque of the Red Death and Dance of the Red Death. Death is amidst practically every street corner, so to speak, in Dance of the Red Death, and Griffin doesn't shy away from describing the somewhat gory effects of the plague, as I imagine far too many authors would, in fear of disturbing their audience. Without these very details, I feel that the world in which Araby and others are trying desperately to survive would bear less of an impact and the character's struggles would bear less of a weight had we not been presented what could happen due to the plague first hand.

Araby has grown as a character from Masque of the Red Death to Dance of the Red Death quite significantly, and even better, believably. Where Masque of the Red Death left off, Araby was a pretty naive character, and while that may have been slightly remedied and contradicted throughout the course of Masque, I feel that naiveté of Araby is thrown out the window in Dance, as she morphs into a genuinely strong character capable of fending for herself. The other characters, however, I wish were met with the same development. I really enjoyed seeing Araby and April's relationship once again, and they had their heartwarming moments, but in the end I feel it lacked that certain amount of development that would have made their relationship that more touching as the novel progressed. As well as that, I, unfortunately, don't have as much enthusiasm for this love triangle in Dance as I did in Masque. Without giving too much away, it almost felt like the same revelations regarding the love triangle and the two love interests in it were recycled from Masque and haphazardly placed into Dance, which ultimately led to some moments that were intended to be shocking to be slightly frustrating for me.

But, in the end, with those qualms as well as one concerning the rather uneven pacing towards the middle aside, Dance of the Red Death is an undeniably worthwhile follow-up to Masque of the Red Death, and ultimately is a satisfying conclusion to the Masque of the Red Death duology. With a gorgeously rendered world and atmosphere, a strong female lead, some genuinely touching moments alongside some genuinely intense moments, Dance of the Red Death should certainly not be missed by fans of Masque of the Red Death, nor should Masque of the Red Death be missed by anyone who pines for those aforementioned points in a novel.

[Koral Polidore · Rating 1 out of 5]

**CONTAINS SPOILERS** (Sorry for venting this book really disappointed me)

I absolutely loved the 1st book and was extremely excited when I heard a 2nd book was coming out but sad to say I was highly disappointed! Before I started the book I read a few reviews and saw that people were disappointed but I still had hope this book wouldn't be dreadful. At the beginning I didn't think it was that bad. A little slow maybe but not bad. As soon as I thought the book might pick up *BAM* it starts going downhill. All my hopes for this book slowly faded.
I LOVED Elliot!!! I thought Araby and Elliot would end up together but no. She decides for some reason she loves Will, says Elliot is a power hungry wannabe dictator, pawns the diamond ring he gave her twice, kills Elliot's uncle when he said he wanted him alive, and demands things from him even though he owes her nothing because of his broken heart!

The author totally started to make Elliot sound like the bad guy. Saying he doesn't really love Araby, he wants to be a dictator, he's twisted and sick (in the head), he hurts people (physically and emotionally), he's cold hearted, not strong enough (mentally) to kill his uncle, and cruel for imprisoning Araby's dad and wanting to kill him. If I was Elliot her father would already be dead and I would make her watch just for revenge for killing my uncle and breaking my already neglected heart! I HATE how Elliot now hates Araby but understand. In the 1st book Elliot was sarcastic, mysterious, strong, smart, sexy, hauntingly unpredictable but loveable while in this book he's made out to be not trust worthy (he wasn't in the 1st book either but then it was like he's trying to protect her from himself instead of a flat out liar) and a terrible person. Will and Kent didn't even want him to rule. Before the author made it seem like he needed to rule and the city needed him but now him wanting to rule is selfish. I was also very sad that April died and she didn't end up with Kent. I was going to read Glitter and Doom but what's the point now that the main character is dead and there's no hope for her future. I had such high hopes and I'm really sad this book wasn't what I thought it was gonna be. :(

[Mizuki · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars. I can never say no to any novel which supposedly has a connection with Edgar Allan Poe or H. P. Lovecraft, but more often than not these supposed 'homages' only bring shame to Poe's and Lovecraft's doors. Dance of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin and its prequel are no exclusion.

Review for book 1: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

The original Masque of the Red Death is a Gothic horror classic, the story is short and Poe only allowed us to see a tiny piece of location in a depressing world dominated by the deadly plague that is the Red Death; but what we can manage to see is so captivating, unforgettable, vivid with remarkable images shining with the beauty of death and decay in all their dark glory. As to the characters...alright there are only two main characters despite of the large number of people (and their untimely death) being mentioned; and these two main characters are no other than the selfish, wealthy Prince and...the Red Death himself.

Although I do appreciate Bethany Griffin's effort to take on Red Death, but the world she created and the images and emotion she managed to display through her stream punk story pales so damn much before the gorgeous creation of Poe. Sure there is a deadly plague going on and people are panicking and dying left and right, and there is an evil Prince doing whatever the fuck he wants without caring for the struggling ordinary people or finding a cure, and then there is a love triangle and a heroine (who had been a drug addict for a while, by the way) doing what she can to save her loved ones from the deadly plague.

However, while Poe's short story is vivid, shocking, filled with suspense, highly dramatic and brilliant with darkly gorgeous imaginary, Griffin's creation is.....bland, flat and unremarkable in so many ways. Nothing stands out, there is no one scene that is actually memorable, with the actual scene of the masque lasting no more than 2 or 3 pages. What a waste! Even the prequel is better than this mess!

Note: Kelly Creagh's Nevermore trilogy is still the best Poe-related YA story I've ever read so far.

[♥ Rebecca ♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was pretty slow and hard to get into. And as I noted in my review for Masque of the Red Death, the narration was too impersonal. But I just really wanted to know how it ended, so I made it through.

I was really disappointed at the end of book 1 because of the love-triangle. I really liked Will but Araby left him and ended up kissing Elliot. I found that kind of odd because although Will betrayed her, her feelings for him had been strong and I didn't like the fact that she just jumped right to Elliot. She didn't have to replace Will. She could have just been with no one for awhile.

I didn't really like Elliot in book 1 and I found him even more annoying in this one. I didn't like how he didn't seem to consider his sister's life a priority, or anyone's life for that matter. He killed way too easily. He told Araby that he loved her, but it didn't really seem like he did. Their whole relationship seemed strange. Araby didn't like the way that Elliot seemed possessive or her, and seemed to think that their relationship meant more than it did. But all the times that he held her or kissed her, she didn't stop him or tell him what she felt. So really, she was leading him on. So I am glad that in the end she forgave Will and ended up with him again instead. It was quite clear through all of this book that she still cared for him.

[Anushka · Rating 2 out of 5]

I waited for a long time ( almost a whole month ) to read this book
And it turned out to be a HUGE disappointment.

Araby's world is almost destroyed, Her Father is a murderer, her mother is a captive of Prince Prospero and her best-friend April has the contagion which she might not survive

Now this an interesting synopsis and after all Masque Of The Red Death was so awesome, why shouldn't this book be too?

The Red Death is now ravaging the city, With Malcontent's men spreading the contagion through the city and Prince Prospero is not at all interested in saving it, Its up to Elliot,Araby and Will to save the city.
Now guys, If you have Read Masque Of The Red Death then you know How Will Betrayed Araby But our dear Araby cannot seem NOT to trust him when, on the other hand Elliot has helped her throughout, been there for her, gave her almost every reason for her to trust him, But Araby cant trust him ! How wonderful!



The whole story was vague especially the end Then, I could not understand anything, It seemed like more of a Diary entree, where the person can only understand what he/she wrote, what is going on and is not the other nosy people.
I almost stopped reading it at several occasions but then kept reading because I thought that it would connect to me at one point, like Masque Of The Red Death did and also because I loved the chemistry between Araby and Elliot ( Remember the Crocodile scene? ) I kept waiting for a scene like that, I kept waiting for Araby to realize things which I did a lot earlier.
I could not connect to Araby AT ALL I found her irritating,selfish most of the time, Definitely not an Hero .
It was a HUGE disappointment and the ending was just-stupid?
I don't know, this is my view but I expected so much more from this one.
Elliot? I LOVED HIM.He was just wonderful to read about, I would rather read Elliot's Point Of View rather than Araby's.
And Will? I don't know where to start, The reasons I hate him are endless.
***

[KT · Rating 2 out of 5]

HEY YOU, BOOK!


Definitely my most anticipated book of 2013. I love the fact that this book will begin right where it left off in the first book. I'm usually not a fan of follow up books that fast forwards a couple years, so this is a huge plus.

High expectations for this book. I need this book NOW, April 2013 is too far away :(

Re-reading Masque of the Red Death again and again is no longer doing it for me.

I neeeeed an ARC.




2/5/15 UPDATE:
Sadly, I was extremely disappointed with the ending of this duology. The first book in this series is still one of my favorites and I always go back and reread it, however this last book had none of the qualities I loved in "Masque of the Red Death". For the most part, it was slow and boring. I also hate it when an author has to make one character look bad to justify the female protagonists decision to go with the other love interest.

[KaleidoscopicCasey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am so angry at this book.

^ Yes. Angry Eyes

I'm not angry because the author killed off a beloved character or because the story was terrible, I'm angry because there were so many missed opportunities in this book. I mean characters die, because plague, but I wasn't emotionally tied to anyone we lost so much that it gave me reader rage.

I LOVED this concept. Creating a YA based off of the Poe classic short was brilliant. The original imagines a bleak but opulent world in which a shrewd prince has selected those of society that he wants in his company as a plague devastates the rest of his people. For months they celebrated behind their high walls while the plague rages through the cities outside the walls. Despite it's brief length it is filled with lavish descriptions and is a fantastic example of creating mood through setting (It's very short so if you've never read it you should totally go do that right now).

Dance of the Red Death was the book I was anticipating when I picked up the first book Masque of the Red Death. I wanted that masquerade ball with it's beautifully dark mood. When I didn't get it in the first book I was a little disappointed, but there were other elements that made up for the lack of the ball so even though I wasn't blown away by it I still liked the idea of it enough (and I wanted my opulent ball dammit) that I picked up this one from the library.

I should have left it to my imagination.

When the ball finally happens this is what we get in terms of description:

"The walls, the floors, the ceiling, all black. Everything except the windows- those are a horrible bloody crimson.
This room is smaller than the others, and already crowded with courtiers fleeing my father and Elliott's guards. We move through the press, pushing when we have to. Like the outer room, everything in this room is black, from the wood floor to the wall panels."

And here is how Poe described the "same" room:

"The seventh apartment was closely shrouded in black velvet tapestries that hung all over the ceiling and down the walls, falling in heavy folds upon a carpet of the same material and hue. But in this chamber only, the color of the windows failed to correspond with the decorations. The panes here were scarlet -- a deep blood color.
...
But in the western or black chamber the effect of the fire-light that streamed upon the dark hangings through the blood-tinted panes, was ghastly in the extreme, and produced so wild a look upon the countenances of those who entered, that there were few of the company bold enough to set foot within its precincts at all."

Can you feel the difference there???

This whole book was like that for me. Far too much telling and not nearly enough showing. This was completely different from the first book. The missed opportunities to make this book rich with descriptions filled me with a horrible longing through the entirety of the story. Every time a new setting was described I wanted more than I was given.
Please! I need MOAR!


To the author's credit, Araby, our main character, did have excellent growth in this book. Her transformation into a much more self confident version of herself was lovely to watch unfold. If it hadn't been for her journey through this book I would have considered this to be a complete waste.

Some of the typical YA problems carried over to this book but there was more parental interaction (which seemed odd after such a complete lack of it in the first book). The love triangle got more twisty in this book and I personally could have done without how big of a role the romance played in it but it wasn't unexpected.

I wouldn't tell anyone to not read these books, because I do love the idea of them, I just feel cheated by the poor execution of a great idea. If you are deeply curious then go ahead and give them a try, but maybe don't read Poe's story before you do. If you go into it having the original as a comparison, this one is sadly lacking.

[Reading is my Escape · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reimagining of Poe's Story
 
Sometimes I feel like the world is waiting for all of us to fall ill. For all of us to fade and die.
- Chapter 3
 

This is the second book after  Masque of the Red Death. I finished it quickly. It was a good book, but nothing special. The ending was satisfying and there was plenty of action and suspense. 
 
I read Masque of the Red Death and Dance of the Red Death as if they were one book for my free space in Halloween Bingo. Honestly, it probably should have been one book, but maybe that would be too imposing (at around 600 pages) for its intended audience.
 

 
 

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Update 7/25/13

Read This Review & More Like It At Ageless Pages Reviews

This entire review contains spoilers not only for Dance of the Red Death, but book one as well.

What the hell happened to this series?

Masque of the Red Death was a really fun, atmospheric affair dealing with teen grief, suicide, drug use, and sex in a world inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s short story by the same name. It supposes what life would be like outside of abbey with disease striking down the poor, as well as the feeling of unrest that would come with having a ruler who hides in his home while the people suffer. It ends with all the major characters on a balloon, floating towards Prince Prospero’s palace and their predestined party, ready to confront him for what he’s put the city through.

So why it takes them 80% of the second novel to reach the eponymous ball is beyond me.

Dance takes place immediately following Masque and instead of flying straight to the palace, our heroes instead spend 270 pages wallowing in their love triangle. People who read the first book may recall Will BETRAYED Araby at the end of book one, which would seemingly eliminate him from competition, but no. We are not that lucky. Instead, the characters wander through all of the sets from the first book, despite having two homicidal maniacs after them, while Araby bemoans having to choose.

There are so many plot holes, rushed developments, characters appearing out of nowhere and disappearing just as easily. Frankly, it’s badly written. Examples:

”The Hunter” is released into the swamp because Thom feels bad for the prisoner. Elliott is furious. This isn’t mentioned again until they’re back in the same house in the swamp and he magically reappears at the same time as the heroes. Thom ALSO hasn’t been mentioned in about as many pages. They exist solely for these two scenes.

Mina, another character they find in the swamp, has NO development, yet they let her join the band and follow them around for the rest of the book. They find her. 100 pages later she leads them to an orphanage. The end.

Araby is told her father is dead. She pays a man on the street a diamond for his glasses as proof. He’s not dead. There’s no explanation as to how the man got the false information or the glasses. Elliot gives her the diamond back in the next scene with no explanation as to how he got it. Prospero uses the glasses as part of his ball. No explanation for that either.

Araby figures out that the water pump is in the swamp. She risks her life to give this information to Will and free him so he can activate it. She forgets to tell him where she hid the keys to make it run.

The maids and the jailer who agree to help her free Will are killed and displayed at the ball. Will still escapes. No explanation as to how.

She tells Will she’s also freeing him so he can take April, who is dying from the virus, to her father, the murderous Reverend Malcontent, because he has a cure. April dies offscreen while this conversation happens.

Prospero commissions a giant, mysterious clock just so he can die at the foot of it. While this harkens back to the original story, it doesn’t fit in this one. Several other references to the original are shoehorned in.

Especially in a fantasy novel, suspension of disbelief is important. I could move past one or two unexplained coincidences, but the fact that Prospero seems to be several steps ahead of the heroes, including planting one of his seven items for Araby ON Elliott, and knows things that no one but Elliott does, seems to indicate he’s either a genius and mastermind, in which case he should put up way more of a fight at the end, or much more likely, Elliott is on his side.

Which takes us to the end. Will and Thom risk life and limb to make sure Elliott holds elections once everything is done. They set Araby up as a hero who helps the common people, who rescues orphans and brings clean water to a city under plague, while Elliott is a power-mad dictator like Prospero. Elliott runs unopposed.

When you hear hooves, think horses, not zebras. The fact that the world is suddenly sunshine and children’s laughter doesn’t jive with the gradual change to villain they’ve set up for Elliott. Either the book is so badly written that the author accidentally, to use a wrestling term, turned a love interest heel, or the main character installed another dictator on the throne and is more concerned with throwing birthday parties than worrying about her mistakes. Either way, what a horrible ending to this duology.

7/23/13: Well that was an almost unprecedented disappointment. Review to come.

[Kate Bond · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yikes. 2.5 stars? I guess?

I'm not sure how this happened. I loved Masque of the Red Death. The world building! The characters! The sexual tension! But... I would skip this book, guys. Even if you loved the first one. Especially if you loved the first one.

How to explain without all the spoilers?

First of all, let me just get some dumb personal pet peeves out of the way. These are things that may not bother anyone else and I know I'm a weirdo. OK.

Pet Peeve #1: Spiders are not insects. I was still a bed wetter when I got a real, solid grasp on this fact. Please, please, please stop referring to spiders as insects.

Pet Peeve #2: This one's on me; it really is. Just 100% my fault. But I cannot track the changes in characters' appearance. They develop pustules, dye their hair, lose limbs, and take masks off and on just constantly. Jesus Christ, the masks. I kept forgetting about those fucking masks. AND THEN SOME PEOPLE ARE WEARING THEM WHILE OTHERS AREN'T! AND THEN SOME OF THE MASKS CHANGE! I just can't remember it all. I can't.

Pet Peeve #3: I refuse to take responsibility for this one. EXCEPT that I used to be a costume designer and maybe that makes me more sensitive. But. Saying that a dress is "satin rather than silk" makes not a lick of goddamn sense. Satin is a weave; it's a type of fabric. Silk is a raw material that fabric can be made of. Satin is frequently made of silk. There are also polyester satins. And rayon. And on the other end of that, silk can be woven to form any number of fabrics--jersey, charmeuse, velvet, SATIN...

Pet Peeve #4: Weeping Angel statues are creepy, holmes. They are the scariest of the Doctor Who villains (or were until the most recent few seasons), and they have settled into my brain that way.

Pet Peeve #5: A LOT of Masque of the Red Death was spent on world building, and it was worth it because once we understood the parameters of the world, we could just live in it! And it was cool! But now that world is gone, and we don't have time to build a new one, so we're just stumbling around. That's some George R Martin-level bullshit.

I'm glad I got that off my chest right off the bat. OK. Down to business.

This probably should not have been a YA novel. It should have been 18 & up. I think the author's hands were kind of tied here, and I feel badly about it. The YA thing barely worked in book one because Araby was young, and... and she was sweet. And naive. And all of that works for one novel, but at the end of Masque of the Red Death, shit went bananas, and it's time for Araby to grow up and make some decisions. Everything needs to escalate.

What happens instead is that everyone sits around for the first quarter of the book, making plans and then changing them. Things move along ok in the middle, but the front and back ends of the book feel like vamping. Fully half of the book is teenagers on a scavenger hunt.

And the love triangle. It's bad. It was pretty good in book one, but again, I think Griffin's hands were tied because once Araby makes a choice, her relationship will progress. But the characters also just aren't very interesting.

You know what else doesn't escalate appropriately is the violence. It is no longer horrifying and immediate; it feels boring and... done. It feels really, really done. Because it all was done. In the previous book.

There is also more than one major plot point that is revealed because one of the characters makes a WILD logical leap for the convenience of the author. They figure out where super secret things are hidden repeatedly by simply deciding the things are in a place and being right. The note I wrote again and again and again is "Wow. That's a stretch."

I wish we could go back in time to before this book was written and take all the restraints off this book, and just let it breathe and go where it wants to go.

I'm sad about this.

[AH · Rating 4 out of 5]

Initial thoughts: 4 stars. What a dreary world - Red Plague, evil villains, airships, and hungry crocodiles. A bit of an annoying love triangle but enjoyable nonetheless.

The Review: The world of Dance of the Red Death is a dark and depressing place. The city has been devastated by the Red Death. The dead are piled up everywhere, blocking the streets and neighborhoods. Those lucky enough to escape the city seek shelter at Prince Prospero’s palace. However, this refuge is subject to the whims of the despotic and often sadistic Prince. In the city, a group led by the Reverend Malcontent purposely spreads the disease. The lucky few wear porcelain masks to protect themselves from the dreaded contagion.

Dance of the Red Death is the second book in Bethany Griffin’s series based on Edgar Allan Poe’s short story Masque of the Red Death. It’s not a retelling, it’s more of a rework and it works quite well. The book begins right where the last one left off and it is a quick paced, action-packed read, full of airships, crocodiles, and other assorted clockwork items.

The heroine of this series is Araby Worth, the daughter of the infamous scientist Dr. Worth. Araby is a likable character; she is quite pragmatic and does whatever needs to be done in order to save her friends and to find a cure for the plague. In a world where those in power seem bent upon destruction, Araby stands out as someone who is looking to save her city.

There is a love triangle in this series, though in this instance it didn’t seem to bother me. After all, Araby and Elliot were not really a couple – they were just needed to appear to be one. In fact, they kind of use each other. Personally, I’m Team Will and despite Araby’s anger towards Will, I kept hoping that she would choose him.

Let’s talk about villains. Dance of the Red Death has two very evil villains, each at odds with the other. There’s the Prince Prospero, a sadistic despot with a taste for the macabre. Prospero’s idea of entertainment involves feeding young orphans to the hungry crocodiles in front of an audience. A truly evil man. One of my favorite parts of the book was the 7 tasks Prospero gave Araby to complete. So creepy! The other villain is the Reverend Malcontent, a man who uses religion to push his own agenda for control of the city. Malcontent and his cloaked followers spread the disease throughout the city.

Dance of the Red Death was the perfect conclusion to the series. The book kept my attention. It was full of exciting chase sequences, nail biting suspense, snapping crocodiles, religious zealots, and even some swamp people. The world was richly detailed. If you haven’t had a chance to read this series, I recommend it. It’s a lot of fun to read.

Thank you to Edelweiss and Harper Collins/Greenwillow Books for a review copy of this book.

Review posted on Badass Book Reviews.

[Hypatia]

The world better not end, because I need this book.

[Tecla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sooooooooooooooo boring. omg. The ending was random. I liked Araby the main character but it was too slow.

[Books'N'Tracks · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 Sterne...

Ehrlich gesagt, weiß ich nicht so recht, was ich zu diesem Buch sagen soll. Hätte ich es nicht für eine Challenge gelesen, würde ich vermutlich nicht einmal eine Rezension hierzu schreiben, weil mir schlicht und ergreifend die Worte fehlen. Leider nicht im positiven Sinne.
Die Novelle, die zwischen den beiden Bänden spielt, hat mir so gut gefallen. Ich verstehe einfach nicht, was jetzt wieder schiefgelaufen ist. Ich habe langsam die Befürchtung, dass es zu erheblichem Anteil an der Übersetzung liegt. Manche Formulierungen waren derart unglücklich gewählt, dass man sich fragt, wo die Übersetzer ihren Beruf gelernt haben. Hinzu kommt, dass die englische Sprache um einiges "rasanter" ist als die Deutsche. Manche Sätze kann man eben nicht 1 zu 1 übersetzen, ohne dass sie abgehackt und lieblos klingen. Leider hat die Übersetzerin genau das oft getan, sodass ich mir teilweise vorkam, wie in einem Kinderbuch. All die grausamen Szenen, haben damit ihre Schärfe verloren und allgemein wirkte der Großteil des Buches dadurch wie gewollt und nicht gekonnt.
Auch die Charaktere, die in der englischen Kurzgeschichte zu erheblichem Ausmaß an Tiefgang gewonnen haben, wirkten in diesem Teil der Geschichte wieder flach und sprunghaft. Ob das alle nun wirklich an der Übersetzung liegt, kann ich natürlich nicht mit Sicherheit sagen, weil ich die beiden "Hauptgeschichten" nur auf Deutsch gelesen und demnach keinen Vergleich habe. Allerdings fällt mir keine andere Erklärung dafür ein, dass eine Kurzgeschichte so viel besser sein kann, als die eigentliche Handlung.
Natürlich kann nicht alles an der Übersetzung allein liegen. Auch die Geschichte an sich enthielt einige Logiklücken. Die Idee, eine Geschichte von Edgar Allan Poe neu zu interpretieren, ist super. Auch die Herangehensweise der Autorin hat mir gefallen. Leider hat sie versucht, zu viel auf zu wenige Seiten zu stopfen. Die Geschichte wirkte teilweise derart überladen, dass es mir eher wie ein Actionstreifen im TV als wie ein Buch vorkam. Auch die Emotionen hatten darunter zu leiden. Wenn man schon eine derart grausame Geschichte schreibt, muss man meiner Meinung nach auch dafür sorgen, dass dem Leser die Haare zu Berge stehen. Er muss mitfiebern und mit den Charakteren leiden, was bei mir nur bedingt der Fall war.
Außerdem muss erwähnt werden, dass die Protagonistin sich mal wieder für den Falschen entschieden hat, was mich generell zur Weißglut treibt. Warum können Liebesdreiecke eigentlich nie so ausgehen, wie ich es gerne hätte? Können die Autoren mich nicht einfach vorher fragen, wie ich es gerne hätte? :D

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Araby secures her mask, terrified what the new day brings. There is now something worse ravaging the decimated city: The Red Plague. It brings almost instant death. Piles and piles of bodies are scattered all over the city, rotting and contaminating. Meanwhile, the maniacal Prince Prospero sits in his gluttonous castle, planning his decadent ball. While the Reverend Malcontent is unleashing groups of loyal followers infected with the Red Plague into the city. Sending them amongst the remaining citizens to infect and kill with their touch. On top of all that, April is beginning to show signs of the plague. All hope seems to be lost. Can Araby, Elliot and Will somehow stop the plague and rid the city of the two despots?
What I Liked:
*Once again Ms. Griffin does a tremendous job with her world building. She brings us a bleak and ruined city infected with different strains of virulent plagues. The remaining population forced to always wear masks to protect them from the contagions. The city is ripe with decay and reeks of death and despair. Surrounding the city is a large swamp loaded with snapping crocodiles hungry for dead bodies. Then on the outskirts of town, lives the depraved Prospero in his palace of gluttony and death. He is a wicked man who feeds on the suffering of others and delights in debauchery and opulence. I throughly enjoyed Ms. Griffiths apocalyptic society. It is horrible, yet fascinating.
*This time around, Araby takes some brave steps and finally shows some growth. In the first book: Masque of the Red Death, she is depressed, lost and content to spend her nights floating in oblivion at the Debauchery Club. With the new wave of plague, the Debauchery Club is no more. She is forced to clean up her act, stop the drugs and make some drastic changes all in order to save her city, the dying April and hopefully herself. She finally stands up and fights and makes some daring decisions, and ends up being rather heroic. However, I was amused to see that even in the grimmest of circumstances, she hasn’t let go of her vanity, and there were numerous times where she was primping in front of the mirror or worrying about her dress. She is certainly a conundrum. Not so easy to like, but she grew on me.
*After reading the first book, I went back and red Edgar Allen Poe’s short story: Masque of the Red Death, which regales the tale of the Prince Prospero and his lavish ball. In the final scenes of the book, Ms. Griffiths brings to life Poe’s frightening vision and she certainly does Poe justice with her take. I would highly recommend you take a few minutes and read Poe’s short story before delving into this book, it will greatly enhance your experience.
And The Not So Much:
*The love triangle rears its hideous head once again in this installment, but this time it was even worse. In the first book, Araby seems firmly set on the handsome, tattooed Will, but this time around she harbors great animosity toward Will for his actions at the end of the first book. So she wavers toward Elliot. Back and forth, goes the indecision and hesitancy until she finally makes her choice at the end. Eliot is pushy, forceful and untrustworthy. while Will does nothing. I didn’t like Will very much in this sequel, in fact, I really didn’t like either of the love interests. I truly found the whole romance to be annoying.
*For whatever reason, the final portion of the book feels rather hurried. There is this big focus throughout the book on saving April from the plague, it is Araby’s main purpose to make sure her friend survives. All this buildup culminates rather fast and, I thought the way everything panned out was not in balance with all the buildup. Furthermore, the big finale with Prince Prospero is very anti climatic as well. Araby finds herself at the Prince’s ball, forced to play a deadly game with the Prince. She goes from each of the seven rooms searching for the Prince’s macabre piece of the game. Then when she gets to the final room, I was expecting this big showdown with the Prince where she confronts him with her findings, and he makes her choose between Will or her mother, but guess what? Nothing happens, there is a big ruckus and the whole deadly game is forgotten and left incomplete. I never found out the how and why for the game or even how the Prince managed to set it all up. What was the whole purpose of this game anyway? Once again, there is a tremendous buildup toward murdering the Prince and when the big moment comes, it is just a fizzle. I was expecting so much more!
*There were a lot of loose ends left over. For instance, the fate of Araby’s father and Reverend Malcontent is left undecided. In fact, the whole storyline with Reverend Malcontent is pretty much left undone. I didn’t understand why these story lines weren’t done up. This was supposedly the end of the series, but there were far too many unanswered questions for my taste.

The Dance of the Red Death was an unsatisfactory closing to the series. There is a great deal of tension and buildup toward the final events, only to have them speedily glossed over. The fizzle after all the drama was disappointing. There is a love triangle which gets annoying, and many unanswered questions left lingering. The one thing this series does have going for it is interesting writing and great world building. I definitely enjoyed the refashioning of Poe’s short story, unfortunately the rest of the book left a lot to be desired.

Favorite Quotations:
“Not yet,” Elliot says. “But she will. Araby’s used to loving people who’ve done terrible things.”
“It’s difficult to be hated after being loved.”
“We hold hands even while pursuing death. My hand fits so perfectly in his.”

I received an ARC copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for this review.
Posted@

[Kayla Corrigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved that this was a play off of Poe’s short story. It had some stream punk elements and apocalyptic scenes. It was somehow futuristic yet antiquated. Also helped that their was a love triangle but wished their was a little bit more character development.

[starryeyedjen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, now.  Dance of the Red Death picked up right where Masque left off...with little to no review of the previous book's events.  I suggest a re-read of Masque if you've got the time.  (I'd do it for the swoons alone...they are far and few in this follow-up novel.)  Fighting abounds, escapes and near-misses are aplenty, and even an I love you or two is uttered.  And yet, this finale in the Red Death series just wasn't quite what I was hoping for.

Our Heroine :  That damned silver syringe makes an appearance once again, but this time around, Araby is able to refuse oblivion.  She has learned to deal with grief and regret on her own terms.  Araby's truly grown as a character, from the spoiled, naïve girl she was in Masque to the battle-hardened, world-weary revolutionary she is in Dance.  Despite all of the horrific things she's been a witness to, she still maintains hope that together, she and Elliott can right the wrongs of their families.

The Love Triangle :  In retrospect, I think it was always pretty obvious where Araby's affections lie, even after loyalties were tested and betrayals had come between characters.  But just because it was obvious, doesn't mean I wanted to see it.  I always favor my bad boys with a side of redemption, and this series was no different.  What Araby says is true:  Elliott would make a good leader.  What I'm unsure of is whether that fact alone remains his only redeeming quality.  I think Araby's presence does help to soften his demeanor some, but I'm not sure anyone could truly ever crack the ice surrounding his heart.

Will, on the other hand, is outwardly brusque, but on the inside, he's like a big, cuddly teddy bear.  His presence on the airship, and among the group in general, is at first only mildly tolerated.  His misdeeds are few but they are great, and he has a lot to atone for.  But unlike Elliott, whose actions only serve himself or his purpose, Will is trying to regain trust.  It's clear that his feelings for Araby haven't changed and that he'd be willing to do anything to protect her...even if that means protecting her from Elliott.

I remember Masque being much swoonier.  There were moments, but where were the lines like this?

“And I’m falling in love with you,” he whispers. “But I would throw you in the water and watch crocodiles tear you to bits, if I thought that doing so would accomplish my goals. Do. Not. Trust. Anyone. Especially me.”

What?  You weren't swooning at that point?  ;0)

The World :  Still as depraved and desolate as it was in the first book...but maybe more so with the release of a second contagion.  Now, even a mask may not keep you safe.  But maybe the prince can?  Doubtful.

The contradictions introduced in the first book are still prevalent in this sequel:  the decaying, crumbling city versus the decadent castle.  Traveling through the treacherous, crocodile-infested marshlands versus taking flight in an airship.  The impoverished versus the wealthy.  I imagine that's exactly what it would come down to if such a plague were to be released upon us today:  those who can afford to survive and those who cannot.

My only issue with the world-building is actually one that I find all too common in dystopian and post-apocalyptic novels:  what about the world outside of Prospero's city?  Has there been no communication with the outside world?  Is this place all that exists any longer?

I thought two books would be enough, but I was wrong.

At first, I was rather elated that this would be a duology.  I love when authors and their publishing houses realize that the material is better suited for a two-part series as opposed to the standard trilogy.  Although a satisfying ending to the series, Dance left this particular reader wanting still more from this derelict world, despite the dire conditions the characters still face.  Sure, both books were crammed with drama and action and all manner of twists and turns.  And the ending was great.  But I still have so many questions.  Still, the one that plagues me most, and the one I'm least likely to ever get an answer to is, Would Elliott really have been able to do it?

Thanks to HarperCollins & Edelweiss for the review copy.

This review can also be found at The Starry-Eyed Revue.

[usagi ☆ミ · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I heard that there was going to be a sequel to "Masque of the Red Death", I was incredibly excited. Almost indecently so. I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. And when I did, most of what I'd been hoping for in terms of a resolution to the duology as a whole was more or less lived up to - though there were a few sticking points that kind of prevented this book from becoming from the five star wonder that I was hoping it would be. Regardless, I think everyone who read "Masque of the Red Death" will find something to love in "Dance of the Red Death".

The great thing about this book is that we get a few new characters, but they're not major enough to shake up the insane dynamic that Griffin created in book one. Unfortunately, there is still the love triangle that goes on, but Griffin does play with it rather well and turns it into a symbolic choosing of future paths for Araby by containing them in Will and Elliott. I'm not sure most readers will see it that way as it does drag into a rather significant portion of the book, but that's the way I read into it. This book is takes off right after the events at the end of book one, and really kind of starts with a bang as we realize that April is not getting better, the city is both burning and flooding, and it's all pretty much going to hell, and the choices that Araby must make are really starting to come fast and hard, and any naivete she might have had in book one is literally being burned away. The characters the Griffin has in this duology are wonderful and unforgettable, and they really help further build the world that doesn't expand too much, but just enough to fit the events that unfold therein.

What was the best part of this book was watching Araby's personal character development/journey arc. She changes pretty dramatically, yet keeps most of the charm that made me fall in love with her, April, and the rest in book one. She really grows into herself as a person, and recognizes that she can no longer hide from reality (poverty, disease, violence, and death) by staying at the Debauchery Club (which cleverly gets turned into revolutionary headquarters, I chuckled over that) and by living in her high apartment in the Akkadian Towers. She no longer has the time to waste by throwing herself into oblivion with Elliott's silver needle, she has to put her big girl panties on and look after April, find the cure as written within her father's notebook, and also deal with how he was involved with the original weeping sickness and now the red death. Griffin tortures/kills her darlings really well in this book - even moreso than book one, and with no one better than with Araby.

There are a ton of big reveals in this book - the true identity of Malcontent, more on Prospero, the aforementioned roles Araby's father played in all of these events unfolding, and more. All of this makes for wonderful non-love triangle-fueled tension, to the point where it's on every page. Where is the cure? Is there really a cure? Is Araby's father dead? And what's going on with this "final masquerade" that Prospero is throwing? So many questions, so much tension, and it all gets answered in some way or another by the end of the book in extremely awesome ways - one of my favorites being the end of Prospero himself.

The biggest issue I had: how long the love triangle dragged into the book. While I understand why Griffin did that, I still feel like there could have been another solution. But she did make it up to us by making us see that by choosing Elliott, Araby would have been choosing a more tangible revenge, a lifetime of impulses instead of real feelings and generally, deception. By choosing Will, is she working with the enemy, one that hates her father? But at the same time, she would be choosing a lifetime of true feelings, and in general, truth in all things. Griffin did a great job by really making these two black and white (even with their shades of gray in between), and a very dichotomized choice of future paths for Araby to take.

Otherwise? The world is just as lush, the prose just as gorgeous, and the violence just as eloquent as it was in book one. If you read "Masque", you definitely can't miss "Dance". "Dance of the Red Death" is out now from HarperTeen in North America, so definitely check it out when you get the chance. It's not part of my best of 2013 list for nothing, guys.

(posted to goodreads, shelfari, librarything, and birthofanewwitch.wordpress.com)

[Alyssa Nelson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a disappointing sequel, made even more so, because I think it has a good story at its core, but the writing was in desperate need of tightening up. The first two-thirds of this book contains nothing important; Araby goes back and forth between which guy she likes more, deriding herself for having feelings for either of them. The group is on the run and trying to figure out their next move. Honestly, it wasn’t anything that could have been quickly summarized in a couple of pages. The last one hundred pages was actually quite interesting; it’s what I had expected the first book to touch on, actually, so it’s a shame this duology couldn’t have been put together to be one book, because I think that would have worked a lot better. Alas.

Araby shows great growth and comes into her own as a character. She is tired of relying on everyone else to solve her problems, so she takes the plunge and starts solving her own problems. Her parents also go through a similar change and start helping out, which was a nice change of pace. April is her wonderful self; her character didn’t need to change, and she didn’t. She’s still the girl who tries to make everything better and happy, even in tough circumstances. I really appreciated her as a foil for Araby’s character, and as a impetus for growth for Araby.

I could have done without the love triangle altogether; it kept getting in the way of the story and just wasn’t as compelling as it was in the first book. Everything felt forced, and maybe that was because Araby herself wasn’t sure of her feelings, but I just couldn’t get into it. Even at the end when all the conflict had resolved and they were free to move on and build new lives, I felt as though something was missing from the relationships.

The resolution itself was quite satisfying. I enjoyed the party with the different-colored rooms. I enjoyed them FINALLY confronting the prince. As I’ve said before, the last 100 pages is a wild ride, and if that were the whole of the book, this would have at least 4.5 stars. But, I don’t know if those final pages are enough to make me recommend the series as a whole to anyone. All put together, it was just okay. If it sounds like your thing, you might get some enjoyment out of it. I just wasn’t feeling it from this book at all.

Also posted on Purple People Readers.

[Meagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars, please don't tell me that's the end because that's a really awful and suspended way to end a book. The last fiftyish pages or so were so rushed that it literally jumped from one action part to the next without really time. Suddenly castle, oh no manor house, what it's a few weeks later? It was easy enough to follow, but still a little jumbled.

The only bad thing that I could think of, is if you're overly familiar with Edgar Allen Poe you knew how this one would end. Especially with Prospero setting up for the huge masquerade ball. The minute a 'game' came into play I knew that's where we would be getting our next "Masque of the Red Death" illusion. It was interesting to say the least, kept you guessing how all of these were acquired and what the hell was going on exactly. Sad how the game ended, it could've been a much bigger bang.

There is also that lovely love triangle. I always knew who I was going to go for and it made sense. Araby however is very dull and slow witted for this and her pronouncement of love is so out of no where you're like WHAT?! It'll be interesting to see how that goes, if we get something later.

Araby doesn't really seem to grow in this book. While she thinks she does all of her actions are pretty much driven from the same general purpose that is introduced in the first book. Maybe in the next one she'll finally grow into an adult.

[Nj Sun · Rating 2 out of 5]

1,5
Puh das war echt schlecht :(

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very impressed by Griffins previous titles; Masque of Red Death and Handcuffs. Dance of the Red Death meanwhile not so much.

I wont go into a whole review because im on a state of disappointment and I want to go jive to some music to drown my emotional sorrows. Of course the girl didn't choose the guy I was barracking for (This tends to be my curse).

But, I will go on to ask, was the duo-logy necessary? Dance of Red Death does nothing but tie up the loose ends that were deliberately put in place in MORD to create the need for a squeal. In doing so dragging out a love triangle and plot that, whilst worked in book 1, becomes utterly boring and frustrating in book 2.

Perhaps I should be thankful they didnt drag this out into a trilogy.

[Natalie (Never trust a duck) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I RECEIVED A COPY IN A GOODREADS GIVEAWAY!
I didn't really like it. In fact, to be quite honest, I thought it was a huge letdown. I thought the first book was brilliant and a completely unique twist on Edgar Allen Poe's poem. However, this one just didn't do it for me. I didn't finish the book, I mean I skimmed the last few pages, but the ending was safe, nothing like Allegiant. I didn't care for the characters much, they were flat and lacked depth. The main character was annoying to me how she flitted from one man to the other, becoming besotted to each one. So no, I don't reccommend it. But you should read it and form your own opinion.