From bad to worse: the Lavender Ball that wasn’t
Remember the time a bunch of kids were severely disappointed (and low-key traumatised) by the Glasgow Willy Wonka experience?
Or what about when a heap of Bridgerton enthusiasts paid $150 USD for tickets to a ball that looked worse than a public school year 10 formal?
Well, there might be a new flop event to top the lot.
This week, a book festival for fantasy lovers called A Million Lives Book Festival kicked off in Baltimore—and promptly imploded, going viral on BookTok.
Attendees and authors have since taken to social media to slam the disastrous event, dubbing it the “Fyre Festival of Book Festivals.”
According to the event description, the three-day affair promised a vendor hall packed with fantasy, romance, and mystery authors, plus writing workshops, cosplay meet-ups, and even a Lavender Romance Ball.
But instead of a dreamy literary escape, guests were met with empty conference rooms, undecorated spaces, and a JBL speaker provided by a sympathetic security guard.
Tickets ranged from $50 to $200 USD, while authors reportedly paid hundreds just to secure a table. Spoiler: It was not worth it.
The pièce de résistance of the dumpster fire?
The Lavender Romance Ball, a $200-per-ticket soirée that promised elegance and fantasy flair.
Instead, attendees arrived to find a barren room with scattered fake rose petals, no DJ, and no dinner—just a sad dessert table and a cash bar.
Fantasy author Perci Jay documented the chaos in a viral TikTok series, revealing that chairs were even missing for panel discussions.
Meanwhile, organiser Grace Willows issued a cringe-worthy apology video, offering refunds while claiming she “didn’t make any money” from the event.
As backlash grew, Grace’s company, Archer Management, announced they’d cancel all future events and refund attendees.
But for the indie authors who shelled out hundreds, the damage was done.
The silver lining? The whole mess has gone viral, giving these writers some unexpected publicity.
Here’s hoping their book sales skyrocket—because this festival was a plot twist nobody saw coming.
