Publisher: HarperCollins
Published:
April 24, 2012
Pages:
320
Source:
For Review from HarperCollins/Edelweiss (Thank you!)
Rating:
2 Stars
A devastating plague has decimated the population. And those who are left live in fear of catching it as the city crumbles to pieces around them.
So what does Araby Worth have to live for?
Nights in the Debauchery Club, beautiful dresses, glittery make-up . . . and tantalizing ways to forget it all.
But in the depths of the club—in the depths of her own despair—Araby will find more than oblivion. She will find Will, the terribly handsome proprietor of the club. And Elliott, the wickedly smart aristocrat. Neither boy is what he seems. Both have secrets. Everyone does.
And Araby may find something not just to live for, but to fight for—no matter what it costs her.
In short: Though I really wanted to like Masque of the Red Death by Bethanny Griffin, I couldn't get past the seriously TSTL protagonist.
Unfortunately, and though I really, really wanted to like Masque of the Red Death because it very much seemed like my kind of book, I found much more fault with it than I liked it. The plot was a bit too reminiscent of The Chemical Garden Trilogy (Wither, Fever) by Lauren DeStefano. A dystopian world with a population decimated by illness, a girl with a twin brother and a scientist parent trying to find a cure, ways of avoiding the reality of life for the rich and complete hopelessness for the poor, and an overall dark and dismal atmosphere. I read so many dystopians that admittedly, many of them start to blend together, but I was still looking for more originality in Masque of the Red Death to really make it a great read.
The worst offense of Masque of the Red Death though is protagonist, Araby, who is Too Stupid To Live in the biggest and baddest way. Some of her TSTL moments include - but are not limited to - blindly following and betraying her family for a guy she just met without questioning who he is or what his motivations are, accepting a drink from the seriously evil Prince Prospero without thought and ending up poisoned, and falling for a guy who in one moment is holding her suspended over croc-infested waters, threatening her life, and in the very next second is confessing his love for her. I wanted a heroine to root for, to take control of the situation and to independently think on her own, and though I got a few glimpses of that girl, she was sorely lacking throughout the majority of the novel.
I really dislike writing negative reviews for books where the popular opinion is overwhelmingly positive; it makes me feel like maybe I am missing something, maybe I got this wrong. Still, I stand strong in my dislike of Araby, who pretty much ruined the novel for me. If I had to recommend Masque of the Red Death to anyone, I would say it may be liked by fans of Lauren DeStefano's Chemical Garden Trilogy. And of course, I recommend reading other reviews because even though Masque of the Red Death wasn't the book for me, it clearly was for most reviewers.
Other Reviews:
Katie's Book Blog
The Midnight Garden
Supernatural Snark
Author Links:
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I don't think you got it wrong Aylee, you feel the way you feel right? If Araby didn't work for you as well as she does for other people, then that's just how it is:) I liked her just because I felt like she was at rock bottom and had so much potential to grow and be someone really interesting. That's just me though, and I always enjoy reading a different opinion, it makes things interesting!
ReplyDeleteI guess, yeah. I should really learn to have more confidence in my opinion. It's just hard when other people who's opinions I respect very much feel differently than I did. But unfortunately, I really, honestly didn't like her. I felt sorry for her plenty, but I really like my protagonists to have at least good common sense.
DeleteAh I was excited for this book but I am going to tone it down after your review! I haven't read Masque of Death either and I think everyone pretty much agrees about the creepy feel of this book. Araby sounds like she would annoy me SO MUCH too! I recently read a book where I loved the premise but hate the protagonist!! I haven't read Lauren DeStefano's trilogy yet because even though it generally has positive reviews, it doesn't appeal to me at all. The first book is sitting under my bed though, ha.
ReplyDeleteI really hate being responsible for turning someone away from a book, especially when that book has been getting great reviews by other reviewers. So please still give it a go! You might even like Araby more than I did! I will say though, if Wither is not the kind of book that you usually like to read, than Masque of the Red Death may not be either because I think they are pretty similar overall.
DeleteToo bad you didn't enjoy this one Aylee .. I honestly am not sure if I'll read it because the blurb doesn't appeal to me so much and Araby doesn't sounds like the kind of heroines I like. I'm also not that much nto steampunk ... Thanks for the great and honest review :) !!
ReplyDeleteWell, don't just take my word for it, but you should definitely go with your gut and if this one doesn't sound right for you, then I recommend skipping it!
DeleteEep! I have a feeling I would be bothered by the same things as you. I'm also growing tired of all the genre blending lately.
ReplyDeleteI have this book so I'll give it a try.
Thanks for being honest :-)
I honestly hope you like it more than I do. Genre blending can be hit or miss for me... I might try Dearly Departed by Lia Habel instead, which I hear is also dystopian-steampunk.
DeleteHow disappointing. I don't always mind TSTL protags, depending on the circumstance, but I am particularly wary if this is so reminiscent of the Wither series. It's okay, but a bit too dystopic for me.
ReplyDeleteWell, this one is quite bleak, very depressing. Araby rarely comes out of her stupor to do all that much. So this one may not be good for you.
DeleteMost of the reviews I've read for Masque of the Red Death have been generally really positive, so it was nice to read your opinion which suggests otherwise. I hope once I read the book, I won't have so many issues with the MC like you did. Thanks for the review!
ReplyDeleteI honestly hope you don't either! Even after reading what I've had to say, try to keep an open mind about Araby because you might see her character from a different, and more open, point of view. Thanks for reading!
Delete*blows snort bubbles*
ReplyDeleteAylee, you always crack me up! I think I will be skipping this one. I wasn't the biggest fan of Fever, and I already have massive love for Ash, another boy who threaten to kill the TSTL heroine, so I'm good. :)
haha, I haven't read that one, but I have to say, I was at least hoping that him threatening her life would wake her up from her stupor a bit. She was just so blah the entire book, following blindly, never with her own opinion or showing much common sense. I think your review for this one would be hilarious at least, if you ever did find an inclination to read it :)
DeleteOh no! I had read positive reviews for this one recently, but now I'm a bit put off by the TSTL main character. I'll still read it, but I'll have to push it back on my list a bit. I cannot handle stupid heroines at the moment, haha. Thanks for the honest review, Aylee!
ReplyDeleteI really do hope people will still read this one, see what it's all about for themselves, because I don't have a ton of confidence in my opinion after reading what every other reviewer has had to say about this one. Still, I stand strong in my opinion of just wishing for a protagonist with an ounce of common sense.
DeleteI need to read this book and experience it myself. don't hate yourself for writing bad reviews, I believe that people have their own opinion about the books they've read. I'm sad that it didn't work out for you. I wanna read this one soon!
ReplyDeleteJay
We Fancy Books
Thanks. That is one thing that I really like about being so connected to other reviewers - everyone has their own subjective opinion and they're nice to read. I'm sure you'll like this one way more than I did and that makes me happy!
DeleteMmm...
ReplyDeleteYou know, I've read the original story, and it's NOTHING like what you describe this book to be.
and well, a TSTL heroine is always bad for a book.
I'm sad 'cause I love the Poe story and I hoped this shared some of it's creepy awesome.
Oh really? I really wish I had read it before or had time to read it now, because it would be so interesting to compare. I wonder if I would've liked this one more or less if I had read the original first. I do think it had a good creepy, horrific Poe-vibe though.
DeleteDon't worry about it! There have been books I didn't like that many bloggers have raved about and I've thought: what am I missing? I have this one for review. I'm rather looking forward to it because I am a fan of Poe's short story. But I'll have to see how I feel about the protag.
ReplyDeleteI'd be interested in hearing the thoughts of someone who's read the original to see how they compare! I know I wished I had read it before reading this one. And I hope you love this one more than I did!
DeleteOh no! I'm a huge fan of Poe (so much, in fact, that both of my majors AND my career I chose because of him), and the original has always been a favorite. I was really looking forward to reading this one!
ReplyDeleteWell, please don't take my word for it then! Who knows, maybe I would've appreciated this one a lot more if it I had read this original beforehand. As it is, I can't really speak to if this was a good adaptation or not. I did think it replicated the atmospheric tone of Poe's books though.
DeleteI am a huge fan of not only Poe but his Masque of Red Death (wake me up at midnight and I can recite to you, word by word, how each chamber was decorated in Prince Prospero's palace) in fact, there's no short story I've read more than it. Wanted to read this bad just because of that reason, but a TSTL heroine? Come on. Anyone love that her name is a play on one of Poe's most-used words, arabesque? :)
ReplyDeleteWell, please don't take my word for it, as I haven't read the original (for shame!) and so cannot speak to whether or not this is a good adaptation. I would be very interested in reading your review actually, if you chose to read it, because I would imagine yours would be very unique and particular if you are such a great fan. Interesting to hear that about the name Araby!
DeleteOoh, I've only seen Jenny's and Wendy's reviews for this one so it's always good to see a differing opinion. I'll probably read this one because I'm a sucker for steampunk (or even steampunk elements), Aylee, but I'm in no hurry. The way you described Araby makes me think I'd probably agree with you and want to smack her. Thanks for the review, Aylee!
ReplyDeleteI loved the steampunk elements so I think you would hopefully like them too. Try to keep an open mind about Araby, despite what I said, because maybe you can see it from a different point of view that I didn't notice. I really hope you love this one more than I did!
DeleteThanks for the warning about the main character being TSTL. That really grates my nerves and I'd probably get really frustrated trying to read this book. I think I'll skip it - I don't need that kind of stress from fictional characters. lol
ReplyDeletehaha, yeah she was such a downer and a follower throughout the entire book. All I ask is that my protagonists exhibit at least some common sense, you know? Other people have liked her though, so don't take my word for it.
DeleteHmm, I thought I'd want to read this one, too. I fit the mold, I loved Wither, but I don't know how I'd react to a TSTL MC. Now, I WAS able to enjoy, The Legacy Series, thus far, and Alera is an MC who is barely tolerable! This didn't ruin the story for me, so maybe I have a chance to like this one? I like steampunk, too.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I definitely think you still have a good chance of liking this book. It is possible that I just got so caught up in how much I disliked Araby that it ruined the book for me. I would recommend keeping an open mind going into it, and hopefully you'll like it a ton more! I would be interested in hearing your thoughts anyway.
DeleteThe 'to stupid to live' comment made me laugh. Haha. I'm sorry you didn't like this one. I think I would seriously have a problem with this protag. I think I'll skip it. Thanks for the review.
ReplyDeleteWell, I will say that other people really loved this one, so don't count it out completely. But I don't think you're missing out on anything if you decide to skip it.
DeleteI am so not a fan of DeStefano's Chemical Garden books, and so I'm TOTALLY going to trust you and skip this book. Thanks for that analogy, and sorry you had suffer through this one.
ReplyDeleteLauren @ Hughes Reviews
Heh, thanks. Not the worst experience ever, but I was definitely wanting to speed through it as quickly as possible so I could move on.
DeleteYES! I am SO glad to be reading this - I just reviewed MotRD yesterday myself and honestly it sounds like we felt the exact same way about this book! My biggest complaint was also the TSTL protagonist...and my dislike for Araby really tainted the spectacular world building and tone. I haven't read the Chemical Garden series though so I can't vouch for the similar premises. It did suck to write my review as well though, since pretty much all my Goodreads & blogger friends LOVED this. Anyways great & honest review Aylee, I couldn't agree with you more!
ReplyDeleteThe likeability of the protagonist is a critical factor of my enjoyment in a novel, too. It really affects everything else if you have this annoying and TSTL character that you're supposed to root for to make it through in the end, but you could just care less. Bleh. I don't feel horribly bad about rating this low because I can see that I ton of people really loved it. It just wasn't for us I guess! Thank you!!
Delete