PROLOGUE

WHEN I WAS LITTLE, I WAS A VIVID DREAMER. By the time I was twelve, all of my dreams had come true. Some grownups spend their entire lives trying to make just one dream come true. But beware: Some dreams you would rather remain just that—silly, nocturnal illusions, prickly nightmares that never reach beyond the bounds of sleep. Trust me that, once you get rid of the bad dreams, there’s more room for the really wonderful ones.

I can’t promise your dreams will come true, but I can tell you how it works for me. I just close my eyes at night and wait. Iggy and I hold each other, his stuffed lizard nose nestling against my chin. The scene is as dark and vast as a starless sky. Then, suddenly it’s there: The Glitter! First, just a handful of bright, colorful specks appear, so tiny that I’m not sure if my eyes are playing tricks: fluorescent purples, greens, and turquoise. But sure enough, they begin to twinkle at me, Hi, Raelyn! Then, huge bursts of glitter-dust bound in from everywhere: neon orange and jade, translucent gold and silver, pinks, blues and light bulb white—the brightest rainbow explosion! It’s my own custom-made fireworks, only instead of filling the sky, they seep gently into my tiny universe of dreams. My belly leaps inside as if I’m racing with my brother Jackson, his knuckles clenched to the steering wheel as he whoops with laughter. But here in the sanctity of my room, there is no fear of crashing or spinning out of control.

Once I’ve seen this magnificent display, I know that all is right with the world. It’s my go-ahead to settle into the comforts of deep slumber. And that is when I have my dreams.

I’ve seen the Glitter since before I can remember. It has always been with me, except for during the Horror many years ago (which is what I now call it). No matter my yearning, my wondrous, mystical Glitter was nowhere to be found. I was as empty as the bottomless pit Jackson used to tease me about.

I recall the exact day that I lost the Glitter. And I recall the very day that it came back to me.

It all had to do with Penelope.