The Spirit Bares Its Teeth

In the year 1883, London is a city where the boundary between the living and the dead has become fragile. Individuals with violet eyes, who can communicate with spirits, are under the watchful gaze of the Royal Speaker Society. Among them is sixteen-year-old Silas Bell, who defies the expectations placed upon him. Despite society's insistence on seeing him as a girl destined to marry by year’s end, Silas struggles against this fate. His life has been marked by years of tutoring aimed at concealing his autism, and he spends his time practicing surgery on pigs, rather than conforming to the norm.After attempting to flee from an arranged marriage, Silas is diagnosed with a mysterious ailment known as Veil sickness—a condition leading violet-eyed women to madness. Consequently, he is sent away to Braxton’s Finishing School and Sanitorium, a place known for its harsh educators and its students’ unsettling fates. Some students emerge as suitable brides, while others simply vanish. As the spirits of these missing students begin to plead for his assistance, Silas is determined to uncover and reveal the dark truths lurking within Braxton, risking his own well-being in the process.Andrew Joseph White’s highly awaited second novel presents a historical narrative centered on an autistic trans protagonist. The story boldly critiques the violence of patriarchy and the damage endured by transgender youth forced into societal conformity.