A Dance with Death - (Three Bells Trilogy) by Amanda Linsmeier (Paperback)

About the Book

Desperate to bring her older sister back to life, twenty-two-year-old Corliss Bell makes a deal with a demon. But she gets more than she bargained for when she realizes that she doesn't hate the demon nearly as much as she thought and gets thrown headfirst into his dark world.

Book Synopsis

He laces his fingers into my hair and gently tugs me in, his powerful hand threaded into the wet strands. I whimper, from fear more so than pain. It doesn't hurt. But each word is enunciated as he warns, "Do. Not. Ever. Steal. From. Me. Again."

Corliss Bell would do anything to bring her older sister, Aven, back to life. She'd give up her dreams of being a professional ballerina. She'd resign herself to never leaving the small seaside town of The Pins. Hell, she'd even make a deal with a demon. After all, demons are masters of death.

When a town mystic tells Corliss there's a demon living nearby who may be the key in returning Aven to life, she's emboldened by the idea of getting her beloved sister back. Corliss sneaks into the demon's dilapidated mansion to beg for his help. But instead of finding him, she discovers a pair of enchanted red ballet slippers and steals them. Under the strange, obsessive spell of the stolen shoes, Corliss is hailed as a prodigy and welcomed onto the stage of the prestigious Red Clover dance hall to rapturous applause. However, Corliss starts having unsettling nightmares and hearing voices. And she's fairly certain someone--or something--is watching her.

The demon comes to reclaim what is his but finds Corliss and the slippers hopelessly intertwined. He imprisons her in his mansion, forcing her to dance for him every evening as punishment for stealing. Far from a helpless captive, Corliss begins working out a plan to bring Aven back to life, as soon as she can convince the demon--Orrin--to help her. But first, she has to prove that she's not just some common thief. As she slowly realizes she may not hate Orrin nearly as much as she pretends to, she finds herself diving deeper into his strange, dark world.

Hauntingly beautiful, with lush prose and a vividly creepy atmosphere, A Dance With Death is a compulsively juicy read that will wind its way into your psyche. Part horror, part magic--this is the gothic love story you didn't know you were missing.

Review Quotes

Praise for Amanda Linsmeier's Starlings

"Like the town of Rosemont itself, outwardly lush and beautiful but steeped in sinister secrets, Linsmeier's Starlings is a deliciously dark fantasy that I devoured in a single day." --Amy Goldsmith, author of Those We Drown

"If you ever wished Stars Hollow had more things that went bump in the night, Starlings is for you! Linsmeier's haunting mystery held me captive, eager to learn all of Rosemont's dark secrets." --Erin A. Craig, New York Times bestselling author of House of Salt and Sorrows

"Linsmeier uses a delicate emotional palette to depict her plot, beginning with the subdued gloom and grief surrounding Kit and her mother. The suspense gradually grows to the nail-biting climax, and character development is so nuanced that the reader, like Kit, can't trust anyone. Fans of folk horror will be entranced by this suspenseful novel." --Booklist

"A foreboding, flower-filled, feminist horror story." --Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Amanda Linsmeier's Six of Sorrow

"Linsmeier creates an eerie atmosphere of simmering, suppressed teenage rage. Equal parts unsettling and captivating, Six of Sorrow will hook its claws into you and never let you go." --Keshe Chow, author of The Girl with No Reflection

"Amanda Linsmeier's writing will have you checking under beds and inside the darkest corners of your closets as the spine-chilling twists unfold." --Kelly Cain, author of A Kiss from the Past

"Christopher Pike and Riverdale vibes will entice readers looking for subtle supernatural romance and small-town drama, all topped with a face-off against a menacing secret from the past." --Booklist

"The expertly built atmosphere and the contemplative themes earn this a spot next to Albert's Our Crooked Hearts and Legrand's Sawkill Girls." --The Bulletin

"A solid choice for teens looking for their next witchy girl group read." --School Library Journal

"Linsmeier creates great atmosphere in her richly detailed opening chapters... Lovers of gothic romantasy will find plenty to hold their interest." --Publishers Weekly

"A gothic fairytale with nods to 'Beauty and the Beast, ' Amanda Linsmeier's A Dance With Death explores the overlap of love and grief... The atmospheric prose paints lush pictures of misty beaches, hollow mansion halls, and a demonic queen's court... The tender portrayal of the quiet devastation of grief is standout, rooting the characters in empathetic experiences, even when they aren't human at all." --Foreword Reviews

"A Dance With Death is like a night at the gothic ballet. Eerie atmosphere, resonant themes of revenge and sisterhood, and an exquisitely rendered romance leap from the pages. Readers will be riveted as they watch the story play out on a ghastly stage magically set by Amanda Linsmeier." --Autumn Krause, critically acclaimed author of Grave Flowers

"Absolutely spellbinding! Linsmeier makes a name for herself with this sweepingly romantic, enchantingly gothic fairytale. A Dance with Death is both beautiful and haunting--a masterclass of love, loss, and sisterhood." --Skyla Arndt, author of House of Hearts and Together We Rot

"Atmospheric, swoony, and unputdownable, this dark fairytale retelling is about loss and love, revenge and redemption, and the desperate measures one woman will take to save her sister. Corliss and Orrin's chemistry--framed by a haunting setting and beautiful prose--absolutely crackles off the page. An incredible first foray into adult fantasy!" --Keshe Chow, Sunday Times bestselling author of For No Mortal Creature

"With a trio of charming sisters, a demon in the woods, and a cottage by the sea, Amanda crafts a curious world en pointe, balancing classic romance against artful twists you'll want to savor as they go dancing by! Perfect for fans of Practical Magic, and anyone who grew up desperate to dance in a pair of red shoes." --Maggie Rapier, USA Today bestselling author of Soulgazer

"Told in lush prose, A Dance with Death is a blood-laced gothic romance tied up with a silken bow. Gruesome, grief-stricken, yet ultimately filled with heart, Linsmeier delivers a crushed-velvet triumph of a tale." --Teagan Olivia King, author of Spit Back the Bones and Bitterbloom

"Linsmeier artfully crafts a dark fairytale with gorgeous prose and rich worldbuilding. I was enchanted by the seaside town, the mysterious house, and the eerie magic twisting through every page." --Ana Davis, author of My Keen Knife

"A Dance with Death is a delightfully haunting gothic fairytale, replete with vivid, eerie atmosphere, luscious prose, and a love story that's to die for. I was utterly captivated." --Kalie Cassidy, author of In the Veins of the Drowning

About the Author

Amanda Linsmeier has been a book nerd as long as she can remember, and it was that great love of reading--especially R.L. Stine novels and fairytales--that eventually brought her to writing her own stories. In high school, she won the class vote for "Most Romantic Girl", a title she's ridiculously pleased with. Amanda is the author of Six of Sorrow and Starlings. She feels most joyful when writing, scream-singing her favorite songs, playing in the water, and laughing with her beloved family. She lives in a small house surrounded by trees and cornfields, with a man who smells like maple syrup and woodsmoke. Together they have three wonderfully wild children, a dog, and an assortment of half-feral cats.