In Steampunk England, Micah Grey, an intersex teen, flees their unsupportive home and their noble heritage. They join the circus, where Micah finds a new family, learns the trapeze, and begins to discover dark secrets of their country’s past and the truth about themself.
Read more about this title and its nonbinary rep from librarian Morgan Doherty
Publisher’s Description:
In a land of lost wonders, the past is stirring once more . . .
Gene’s life resembles a debutante’s dream. Yet she hides a secret that would see her shunned by the nobility. Gene is both male and female. Then she displays unwanted magical abilities – last seen in mysterious beings from an almost-forgotten age. Matters escalate further when her parents plan a devastating betrayal, so she flees home, dressed as a boy.The city beyond contains glowing glass relics from a lost civilization. They call to her, but she wants freedom not mysteries. So, reinvented as ‘Micah Grey’, Gene joins the circus. As an aerialist, she discovers the joy of flight – but the circus has a dark side. She’s also plagued by visions foretelling danger. A storm is howling in from the past, but will she heed its roar?
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Steampunk
Representation:
Gender:
Genderqueer/Non-binary & Intersex: Micah
Cis girls: Aenea (side character)
Cis boys: Drystan (side character)
Sexuality:
Bisexual: Drystan, Micah
Unspecified: Aenea
Romantic Orientation:
Not mentioned in the book. Presumed to be the same as the characters’ sexual orientation.
Race/Ethnicity:
White: Micah, Drystan, Aenea
Trigger Warnings:
Violence
Death
Sexual Assault
Flashbacks to violating medical procedures
Additional Notes:
Although it is rectified in Shadowplay (the sequel), Pantomime seems to give the impression that intersex people are a magical species or a mystical subset of humans.
Ownvoices: Ownvoices for bisexuality.