Steel and vengeance... Ember Ignis, the heir of House Draco, knows hatred. She's grown up in it, reveled in it, under the watchful eye of her mother, Lady Verity. Second only in power to the royal family, Ember and Verity are practically untouchable. That is, of course, until Verity goes missing, leaving Ember scrambling to find her mother as rumors of a powerful rebel group spread. Armed only with rumors and the assistance of a lesser son from a low house, she is willing to cleave the world apart to get her mother back. All the while, the crown prince of House Phoenix, Asher Cinis, struggles with a crushing addiction that dulls the abuse he endures at his mother's hands. He prepares to flee, to abandon duty and honor- until Juniper Farley, a new servant at the palace, steps into his life and sees him beyond the crown. As Ember races to find her mother before the consequences turn deadly, and Asher struggles to choose between his head and his heart, they find enemies lurking in every corner, and that the brightest smiles hide the darkest secrets.