A.E. Clarke

A.E. Clarke writes speculative fiction concerned with family bonds, identity, and emotional effects from unusual abilities. Grayscale follows Toronto siblings Holly and Jesse, whose lives change when they discover powers connected to electricity. Beaten Track Publishing’s edition description frames the work as one story of supernatural change and family healing, while Story Engine’s Pride Month reading feature highlights its LGBTQ themes and the siblings’ efforts to understand what is happening to them. The urban setting keeps the extraordinary premise close to recognizable pressures involving trust, secrecy, and belonging. Clarke does not separate the characters’ powers from their relationships; the central question is how brother and sister respond when personal history and a dangerous new reality collide. Grayscale therefore sits comfortably between contemporary fantasy and character-led speculative fiction. Its appeal lies less in an abstract system of powers than in the emotional effects of discovery, particularly the strain and possibility created when two young people must reconsider themselves and each other.