The 1900s World’s Fair will be held in Paris, and the city is abuzz with creative energy and innovations. Audiences are spellbound by the Lumiere brothers’ moving pictures and Loie Fuller’s serpentine dance fusing art and technology. But Clara Ironwood, a talented and pragmatic clockmaker, would rather spend
her days working on the Palace of Illusions, an intricate hall of mirrors that is one of the centerpieces of the world’s fair.

When her godfather sends Clara a hideous nutcracker for Christmas, she is puzzled until she finds a hidden compartment that unlocks a mirror-world Paris where the Seine is musical,
fountains spout lemonade, and mechanical ballerinas move with human grace. The magic of her godfather’s toys was real. 

As Clara explores this Paris and begins to imbue her own creations with its magic, she soon discovers a darker side of innovation. Suspicious men begin to approach her outside of work, and
she could swear a shadow is following her...

A historical fantasy spin on the Nutcracker