A WILD RADIANCE

Josephine Haven, an apprentice Conductor, embarks on her first assignment, fueled by a burning determination to prove herself, but as she leaves the confines of her childhood home, she confronts how little she knows about the world.

Like all Children of Industry, Josephine grew up as an orphan raised in the House of Industry, where she learned to wield her innate gift of radiance, a power essential to the spread of Progress across the continent. Overflowing with big feelings and wild curiosity that cause her radiance to flare, Josephine has always struggled to follow the strict rules of the House. At first, her new Mission assignment to the remote town of Frostbrook feels like a punishment for her failures, but Josephine finds herself unexpectedly falling in love with life outside the city, forming forbidden relationships with people who challenge her, and questioning everything the House taught her about the pursuit of Progress. Mora captures the diverse and richly developed world around Josephine—a red-haired girl who’s “pale as bone” and cued neurodivergent—through lush prose. Lively tension sparks between hot-tempered Josephine, her prickly mentor, Julian, and the exasperatingly charming apprentice healer Ezra as Josephine navigates the feelings she’s been taught to deny. This fast-paced, romantic, abundantly queer historical fantasy explores the intertwined pain, fear, joy, and beauty of self-discovery in defiance of oppression by an authoritarian society.

Alluring and electrifying magic.