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Incandescent Girl: A Queer Fairy Tale

by Mary Borsellino

A trans heroine weighs a fairy-tale bargain

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AlbakiReads Editorial

A trans heroine weighs a fairy-tale bargain

Robin’s story reshapes the familiar danger of a wish granted with a trick: the queen’s bargain with an enchanter leaves Robin facing a lifetime of rejection, even as she knows herself to be a girl. Now sixteen, she confronts a new request for magical help as the queen nears death. The conflict brings together fey folklore, family ties, and the question of whether a person owes care to someone who has treated them cruelly. Its fairy-tale framework gives the story’s exploration of trans identity and complicated family bonds a clear central tension.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Teens and young adults interested in queer and transgender fiction
  • Readers drawn to fairy tales, fey folklore, and magic
  • Those interested in stories about family bonds and difficult choices

Themes

Trans identityFey bargains and folkloreFamily conflictCare, obligation, and forgiveness

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

"A new queer fairy tale full of heart, charm and surprises, which turns the old warning of 'be careful what you wish for' on its head."
- Lisa Tirreno, author of Prince of Fortune

"Against the backdrop of fey tricks, folklore, and magic, Mary Borsellino traverses the bonds between family and friends with tenderness and wit to create a queer story that warms the soul."
- C.S. Pacat, author of Captive Prince and Dark Rise

"Sharp characters handled with incredible authorial tenderness, a narrative structure that understands and expresses trans experience with straightforward, intimate clarity, and a sweet, human warmth and connection that cannot help but break through any bitterness that the world has instilled into its inhabitants.
It's a fast, compelling, and easy to read story to leave you feeling terrible affection for a (not so) terrible girl."
- Erin Kyan, Writer and Podcast Producer

Before Robin was born, the queen begged the enchanter Sebastian for her child to be a daughter. He promised she would be. The delivery was long and hard, and nearly killed the queen, and then at the end... a boy baby. The disappointment left the queen bitter and unkind.

But Robin knows the truth: she is a girl. In the way of all fey gifts, Sebtastian's promise was a trick.

Now Robin is sixteen, and the queen is dying. Her only hope may lie in magic once again. But after a lifetime of cruel treatment, does Robin even want to help?

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