Genre:
Speculative Fiction
Themes:
Coming of Age
Dystopian
Fated Mates
First Love
Love At First Sight
Magic
Religion
Self-Discovery
Soulmates / Reincarnation
Supernatural Elements
Heat Level:
Sweet (kissing, holding hands, etc., but no other on-the-page physical intimacy)
Archetypes:
Artist / Graphic Designer / Illustrator
Student
Geographic Location:
United States: Midwest
Fantasy or Fictional Setting
Setting:
Big City / Urban
Sexual / Gender Identity:
Lesbian
Queer
Protagonist Identity:
Jewish
Trigger/Content Warning:
one brief memory of sexual assault
The Papercutter
E-Lit Award
Lesfic Bard Award
The Split Trilogy, Book 1
By Cindy Rizzo
When the first generation comes of age after the US splits into two countries, 3 queer teenagers unite to face the growing danger.
A deeply polarized and ungovernable United States of America has separated into two nations—the God Fearing States (GFS) and the United Progressive Regions (UPR).
Judith Braverman, a teenager living in an Orthodox Jewish community in the GFS, is not only a talented artist accomplished in the ancient craft of papercutting, she also has the gift of seeing into peoples’ souls—and can tell instantly if someone is good or evil.
Jeffrey Schwartz has no love for religion or conformity and yearns to escape to the freedom of the UPR. When he’s accepted into an experimental pen pal program and paired with Dani Fine, an openly queer girl in the UPR, he hopes that he can finally find a way out.
As danger mounts and their alarm grows, Judith embeds a secret code in her papercuts so that she and Jeffrey can tell Dani what’s happening to Jews in the GFS without raising suspicions from the government. When the three arrange a quick, clandestine meeting, Jeffrey is finally faced with the choice to flee or to stay and resist. And Judith is reeling from a pull toward Dani that is unlike anything she has ever felt before.
