The Traitor's Gamble: A Glass and Steele Short Story

Glass and Steele #0.5

by C.J. Archer

About THE TRAITOR'S GAMBLE
Five years before Matt meets India in London, he finds himself in the American backwater of Broken Creek, a Wild West town on the fringe of the civilized world. Employed by the local bank to investigate the heist of gold bullion, he goes deep undercover along with his friends, Duke and Cyclops, and his cousin Willie.
Drinking and gambling to excess haven't deterred the pretty schoolteacher's daughter from taking an interest in Matt, and despite the concerns of his friends, he has no intentions of giving up his vices. Not even when the arrival of his outlaw grandfather risks exposure—and his life.
Can Matt find out who is involved in the theft before it's too late? Will his grandfather forgive him for leaving the family trade, or make him pay? And will Matt's bad habits dig him into a deeper hole than he can climb out of?

THE TRAITOR’S GAMBLE is set 5 years before the opening of the first Glass and Steele novel, THE WATCHMAKER’S DAUGHTER. This short story should be read ONLY after you’ve completed THE WATCHMAKER’S DAUGHTER, as it contains spoilers for that book, but not for the rest of the series.

Story available only through Members Only link on the author's website.

Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Fiction, Magic, Historical Mystery, Romance

63 pages, ebook

Published January 1, 2017

About the author

C.J. Archer is the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of historical mystery and historical fantasy novels including the GLASS AND STEELE series, the CLEOPATRA FOX MYSTERIES, the MINISTRY OF CURIOSITIES and THE GLASS LIBRARY series.

She has loved history and books for as long as she can remember and feels fortunate that she found a way to combine the two. She has at various times worked as a librarian, IT support person and technical writer but in her heart has always been a fiction writer. She lives in Melbourne, Australia, with her husband, 2 children and Coco the black and white cat.

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Reviews

[TXGAL1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Glass and Steel Prequel #0.5

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to finally know what happened in Broken Creek.

[Caitlin O'Neill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting backstory but was pretty short and not really necessary to keep up with the main books.

[Lindap · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 / 3 Stars

I read this novella awhile ago, I just didn't see the novella on GR to rate at the time.

I'm not big on wild west stories, and although we do already know the background of Matt's near death experience, this story gives me details. Not bad for a quick novella.

[Natasha du Plessis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read the Watchmakers daughter and loved it so much that I had to read the whole series. I really enjoyed this novella as in it we learn where the magic watch had its origins. Was nice to meet up with the gang again.

[Sandy Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was entertaining, but I felt like the language for the American characters was a bit over-the-top. Not that we don't use colorful expressions in the West or that they did not in the Wild West, but... it seemed forced. At a couple of points I felt as though the author was poking fun at the American West's culture. I'm not a gun-toting, dirt-loving wild woman of the American West, and yet I felt a little like I was being made fun of, which is probably ridiculous.

C.J. Archer is a great story-teller and I enjoyed the Ministry of Curiosities Series a great deal. I guess this is just not going to be one of my favorites. It was entertaining and easy-to-read, so overall not bad.

[Elenariel · Rating 2 out of 5]

It doesn't reveal anything new about Matt's and his companions' past adventures. The critical one was already well described in the main books, there was no need for this short story. It also lacks the Victorian London fascinating atmosphere.
But it's free: nothing lost, save for less than a couple of hours.

[Lizzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was alright it gave some of a background into the watch but I wish the author would added in his near death after not believing about the watch and the 5 years after when it was no longer working and he was going to journey to England. That would’ve made the story complete for me. Just those two or three extra chapters

[Francesca · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice short story to fill in the blanks prior to the Glass and Steele series. They always refer to Matt's past it is nice to know what they are talking about, however, it was a quick read and not all that interesting.

[Laurla2]

free on the authors website once you sign up to the newsletter.

the story of how matt became injured and was healed by the doctor and chronos working together back in america.

"none of 'em like how I dress, and all of 'em reckon they have a right to tell me how to live my life."

[MGB · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic western with some mystery and intrigue. It pulls in the English connection and reveals more about the main characters.

Certainly an enjoyable read for those who like Westerns or who want to see the origins of the Glass and Steele series.

[Simira · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nice to see how the shooting actually went down but it was a little anticlimactic since we knew Matt would be fine. Also, nice to see him working. We just had the author’s word he was good at his job, but seeing a small piece was reassuring.

[Rita Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really fun little story. If you have read the first glass and steel series. You definitely should subscribe to C.J.Archer newsletter so you can get this short story and read, it's more than worth it 🥰

[Pam · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't really like Westerns.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story how Matt became who he is.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since I’ve read 8 books of this series thought I should read how Matt came to need his watch to live, glad I did.

[Audrey Shaffer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good set-up for the Glass and Steele series.

[Krista Phipps · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice background short story. It's only about 63 pages long. Don't read until after you've read "The Watchmaker's Daughter".

[Angelique Cunningham · Rating 5 out of 5]

The rest of Mathew Glass' story.

[aem · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was cute, but kind of lacking in character development... Read book 1 of glass & Steele so this provided some insight.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read...but I don't think it should be read before starting the series.

[Laura Crognalo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short but gave some missing pieces needed.

[Haley Addie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the extra backstory on the series!

[Donna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. It was okay but doesn't actually add much to what we already learned in the first book.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting prequel to the Glass and Steele series. India Steele adds a lot to the series, so the lack of her in this made it less interesting. But worth reading for backstory.

[Rebekah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good to read how it came about the shootout and the magic.

[Justine McMurray · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good prequel to finally learn the whole story of how Matt was healed. Nice to see the gang in America on their home stomping grounds.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story about Matt. Appreciate having the background for future audiobooks.