Before We Disappear
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5.0 • 4 Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection!
It’s a new star-crossed, LGBTQ+ romance about the magic of first love in a lush YA historical fantasy from the acclaimed author of We Are the Ants and Brave Face, Shaun David Hutchinson.
Jack Nevin’s clever trickery and moral flexibility make him the perfect assistant to the Enchantress, one of the most well-known stage magicians in turn-of-the-century Europe. Without Jack’s steady supply of stolen tricks, the Enchantress’s fame would have burned out long ago.
But when Jack’s thievery catches up to them, they’re forced to flee to America. Their new fortune awaits at Seattle’s 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific World’s Fair, a dazzling historical setting. The Enchantress is convinced they’re going to be rich and famous until a new magician arrives on the scene. With two rival magicians now vying for the spotlight, Laszlo’s show overshadows the Enchantress, leaving Jack no choice but to hunt for the secrets to his otherworldly illusions. But what Jack uncovers isn’t at all what he expected.
Behind Laszlo’s tricks is Wilhelm—a boy with secret powers who can seemingly perform real magic. Jack and Wilhelm have an instant connection, and as the rivalry between the Enchantress and Laszlo grows, so too does Jack and Wilhelm’s affection. But in this story of found family and first love, can Jack choose between the woman who gave him a life and the boy who is offering him everything?
It’s a stirring tale about the magic of love from award-winning author Shaun David Hutchinson.
A Star-Crossed Romance: As assistants to bitter rival magicians, Jack and Wilhelm must keep their growing affection a secret. But in the glittering chaos of the World’s Fair, some secrets are impossible to keep.1909 World’s Fair: Step into the magic and marvel of the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, a world of dazzling new technology, stage illusions, and the whispers of real magic around every corner.The Boy with Real Magic: Wilhelm isn’t just an assistant; he’s the secret to his master’s impossible tricks—and a prisoner to the man who stole him from his family years ago.High-Stakes Magical Rivalry: From stolen illusions in the back alleys of Paris to a dangerous magical duel in the heart of Seattle, Jack must unravel the truth before the competition turns deadly.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The 1908 Alaska-Pacific-Yukon Exposition draws performers, entrepreneurs, and frauds to Seattle, and white 16-year-olds Jack Nevin and Wilhelm Gessler work for people who qualify on all accounts. Jack's boss, a magician and serial defrauder who calls herself Evangeline, took him in when he was seven; now her assistant, Jack's an expert pickpocket with an eye for money-making opportunities. Wil, taken from his family at age four by a sadistic thief calling himself Laszlo, is exploited as part of a magic show for his ability to travel invisibly. In alternating chapters, Jack and Wil narrate the story of becoming acquaintances, friends, and more, but their affection and freedom become highly risky as Laszlo monitors Wil constantly, even caging him. To pursue their future, the duo create an elaborate scheme, aided by all their friends. The world-building can feel bulky, slowing the book's pace, but can-do, brave Jack and Wil—burdened by guilt, fear, and the likelihood that loving him will endanger Jack—make a sweet couple. Hutchinson's (A Complicated Love Story Set in Space) novel has an intriguing setup and historical milieu, and the final trick, which relies on magic, fraud, planning, and friendship, makes for a bravado ending. Ages 14–up.
