Yelena is a survivor. Kidnapped as a child, held prisoner as a teen, then released to act as a poison taster, she is now a student of magic. But these magic skills place her in imminent danger, and with an execution order on her head, she has no choice but to escape to Sitia, the land of her birth.
But nothing in Sitia is familiar. As she struggles to understand where she belongs and how to control her powers, a rogue magician emerges and Yelena catches his eye. Suddenly she is embroiled in a situation not of her making. And once again her magical abilities will either save her life or be her downfall.
With her greatest enemy dead, and on her way to be reunited with the family shed been stolen from long ago, Yelena should be pleased. But though she has gained her freedom, she cant help feeling isolated in Sitia. Her Ixian background has changed her in many ways and her new-found friends and relatives dont think its for the better.
Despite the turmoil, shes eager to start her magic training especially as shes been given one year to harness her power or be put to death. But her plans take a radical turn when she becomes involved with a plot to reclaim Ixias throne for a lost prince and gets entangled in powerful rivalries with her fellow magicians.
If that wasnt bad enough, it appears her brother would love to see her dead. Luckily, Yelena has some old friends to help her with all her new enemies.