An Almanak of the Red House

An Almanak of the Red House is a short excerpt from Vignetta in the Red House consisting of a glossary and important terms that describe the Alchemically driven technology of Sangrila and the Red Coast. When Vinni was five, her mother was institutionalized for madness. Vinni’s family, the women of the Red House, have built their wealth and standing by using alchemy to make homunculi: Artificial creatures that act as companions and helpmates. Vinni's mother made the best. Now Vinni longs to make homunculi as brilliant as her mother's. Though none of her Aunts will undertake to teach Vinni anything serious of the craft until she's had her first blood, Vinni learns in secret, hampered by the strict rules of her Grandmother, who leads the Red House. Making a homunculus early puts Vinni on a collision course with Grandmother's plans for the Red House, which in turn puts the Red House on a collision course with the rest of Sangrila, the most powerful city state on the Red Coast.