The Unsought Light: A Japanese Fairytale Retelling with a Gothic Twist
About this ebook
Hana dreams of floating away on the breeze like the cherry blossoms.
But when an otherworldly stranger offers a chance at escape from the stifling bonds of impending arranged marriage, duty and desire collide in a war that threatens to bring down her family, her clan, and her village.
Freedom. Passion. Family. Fate. What do you do when there are no good choices left?
A Gothic NA Fantasy retelling of the ancient Japanese folktale The Maiden of Unai, this short story explores the untold perspective of a young woman destined for an arranged political marriage in a time and place where family fortunes mattered more than individual happiness or choice.
Historical tragic romance in the vein of Rome & Juliet with a supernatural twist and a lightly poetic seasonal framing device, this folktale is part of the Shinjū/"lover's suicide"/suicide pact genre in Japanese literature, and includes reader advisories on depictions of misogyny, parental abuse (emotional/non-physical), suicidal ideation, kidnapping, arson, murder, suicide, drowning.
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About the author
K.A. Wiggins (Kaie) is a Canadian speculative fiction author, speaker, and creative writing coach who writes award-winning speculative fiction for children, teens, and all ages.
Best known for “eco-apocalypse + monsters in dystopian Vancouver” gothic YA Science Fantasy series Threads of Dreams, her short fiction has also been published in Lightspeed Magazine, The NoSleep Podcast, Fantasy Magazine, Mysterion, Pulphouse Magazine, The Fairytale Magazine, and in anthologies from Renaissance Press and Hungry Shadow Press, among others.
She is the president of the Children's Writers & Illustrators of British Columbia Society and teaches with the Creative Writing for Children Society. Find her at kawiggins.com or @
