The Game of Oaths: (A YA Historical Fantasy about a Magical Circus, Deadly Tournament, and Revenge)

Description

“Utterly captivating.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

In this heart-pounding, richly imagined fantasy set in the Belle Époque, a trapeze artist fights to win a deadly tournament amid the glamour and illusions of a magical circus. But survival isn’t her only goal–she wants revenge.

It’s 1896. Beneath a hotel in the heart of Paris is the famed le Cirque des Ombres, led by ringmaster and Enchanteur Jean-Pierre. But behind the dazzling spectacles, the circus performers are bound by magical contracts, also making them potential players in the annual Game of Oaths, an underground bloodthirsty tournament watched by the wealthy elite. Twelve will compete. Eleven will die.
Seventeen-year-old trapeze artist Falan Sunkara is out for revenge. After her sister ended up as one of the unlucky eleven last year, Falan wants nothing more than to make Jean-Pierre pay for her death. When she’s chosen to compete in this year’s tournament, Falan is not above playing dirty and forging unlikely alliances. But to be the last one standing, she has to determine whom to trust and whose motives to question. Vengeance on top of survival is a dangerous gamble–and in games like this, the house always wins.
Binding Type: Hardcover
Author: S. C. Bandreddi
Published: 06/02/2026
Publisher: Candlewick Press (MA)
ISBN: 9781536252637
Pages: 432
Weight: 1.35lbs
Size: 1.50″ H x 9.10″ L x 6.20″ W

About the Author
S. C. Bandreddi is a writer who hails from California’s Bay Area, where she grew up scribbling stories deep into the night and hasn’t stopped since. She’s a graduate of California State University, Fullerton, where she studied communications and film. When she’s not putting words on paper, she’s usually gaming, rewatching her favorite movies, or at an arcade trying to win as many plushies as she can.