Melting Queen, The

Shortlisted for the Sixth Annual Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize—Literary Fiction Category!
Shortlisted for Best Speculative Fiction at the 2020 Alberta Book Publishing Awards!
Shortlisted for Best Book Design at the 2020 Alberta Book Publishing Awards!
Second Place in the Prose Category at the 2019 Alcuin Society Awards for Excellence in Book Design in Canada!

Every year since 1904, when the ice breaks up on the North Saskatchewan River, Edmonton has crowned a Melting Queen—a woman who presides over the Melting Day spring carnival and who must keep the city’s spirits up over the following winter. But this year, something has changed: a genderfluid ex-frat brother called River Runson is named as Melting Queen. As River's reign upends the city's century-old traditions, Edmonton tears itself in two, with progressive and reactionary factions fighting a war for Edmonton's soul. Ultimately, River must uncover the hidden history of Melting Day, forcing Edmonton to confront the dark underbelly of its traditions and leading the city into a new chapter in its history.

Balancing satire with compassion, Bruce Cinnamon’s debut novel combines history and magic to weave a splendid future-looking tale.