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Dark and Deepest Red

Pages
320
Published
2020
Language
English

Synopsis

Summer, 1518. A strange sickness sweeps through Strasbourg: women dance in the streets, some until they fall down dead. As rumors of witchcraft spread, suspicion turns toward Lavinia and her family, and Lavinia may have to do the unimaginable to save herself and everyone she loves.

Five centuries later, a pair of red shoes seal themselves to Rosella Oliva's feet, making her dance uncontrollably. They draw her toward a boy who knows the dancing fever's history better than anyone: Emil, whose family was blamed for the fever five hundred years ago. But there's more to what happened in 1518 than even Emil knows, and uncovering the truth may decide whether Rosella survives the red shoes. A dual-timeline fairy-tale retelling pairing "The Red Shoes" with the real history of dancing plagues.

About the author

A
Anna-Marie McLemore

Anna-Marie McLemore (they/them) is a Mexican-American author of young adult magical realism and fairy-tale retellings with queer and Latine characters. They were born in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains in California. Their debut novel, The Weight of Feathers, was published in 2015, followed by When the Moon Was Ours, Wild Beauty, Blanca & Roja, Dark and Deepest Red and Lakelore, plus Miss Meteor with Tehlor Kay Mejia and Venom & Vow with Elliott McLemore. When the Moon Was Ours won th...

Characters

Rosella OlivaProtagonist

A present-day teenager whose feet become bound to a pair of enchanted red shoes.

EmilProtagonist

A present-day boy descended from the family blamed for the 1518 dancing fever.

LaviniaProtagonist

A young woman in 1518 Strasbourg suspected of witchcraft during the dancing plague.

All characters in Dark and Deepest Red

Frequently asked questions

  • Do I need to read Anna-Marie McLemore's other books first?

    No. Dark and Deepest Red is a standalone fairy-tale retelling and doesn't require reading any of McLemore's other novels first.

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