Juliet Grace has always loved to dance, but never dreamed she might have been born to perform . . .

In an alternate London, the city's Theatre District is a walled area south of the river where an immersive production - the Show - has been running for centuries, growing ever bigger, more sprawling and lavish. The Show is open to anyone who can afford a ticket but the District itself is a closed world; from performers to stagehands, all are born into their roles, and follow their own rules: even the police have no jurisdiction within the District's walls.

Juliet is nineteen and has never felt she belonged. Her mother died when she was a baby and, brought up by her emotionally distant father and even more distant stepmother, she longs to be accepted, to find somewhere she can call home, somewhere she feels right.

It's only when her father passes away that she learns her birth was registered in the District. Almost sick with the knowledge that she might belong somewhere at last, she travels to London where she hopes to unearth the truth about her identity, her mother's death and her father's years of silence - and claim her birthright. But in the District, there is only one central truth: the Show must go on. And in a world where illusions abound, and powerful men control the narrative, Juliet has no idea of just how far some will go to ensure certain stories are never told . . .