Glitch

In literature, approaching storms often symbolize change and/or trouble on the “horizon.” This symbolism holds true in Glitch. At the beginning of the novel, before Regan finds the Cocoon that changes her life, she notices a storm coming, which symbolizes how everything is about to change. She observes, “A quick glance at the sky showed an approaching storm. Good. I liked storms. They were wild and unpredictable, and they played by their own rules. Something I both envied and admired” (45). Like the storm, certain time travelers in the novel play by their own rules, ignoring the law that forbids meddling with the past. Unbeknownst to Regan, she is about to become a time-traveling criminal herself, but her reasons for doing this will be ethically sound despite what she’s been taught. The approaching storm symbolizes the upheaval that will be caused by the attack on the Academy, but it also symbolizes the unexpected solution to this problem: Regan and Elliot will prevent the attack through their own criminal activities so that the trouble may pass without destroying everything near and dear to them.