After Bristol Keats nearly loses her beloved King Tyghan to the monsters her mother had unleashed, their love deepens to a whole new level. Together, Bristol and Tyghan work to understand, moving forward with their common goal of saving Elphame. But when a daring rescue attempt turns into a disaster and a beloved knight dies, Bristol is forced to confront the fact that her mother is more powerful. Meanwhile, Tyghan’s heart is laid bare when he encounters his former best friend and betrayer again, Bristol's own father, and must wrestle with a new secret that throws everything he thought he knew about his past into question. Bristol is Elphame’s last chance for survival. If she fully embraces the magic that has been her birthright, she could become a different kind of monster from her mother. Is she willing to risk losing the people she loves most, if it means keeping them safe?

After losing both their parents, Bristol Keats and her sisters struggle to stay afloat in their small, quiet town of Bowskeep. When Bristol begins to receive letters from an “aunt” she’s never heard of who promises she can help, she reluctantly agrees to meet --- and discovers that everything she thought she knew about her family is a lie. Even her father might still be alive, not killed but kidnapped by terrifying creatures to a whole other realm --- the one he is from. Desperate to save her father and find the truth, Bristol journeys to a land of gods and fae and monsters. Pulled into a dangerous world of magic and intrigue, she makes a deadly bargain with the fae leader, Tyghan. But what she doesn't know is that he's the one who drove her parents to live a life on the run. And he is just as determined as she is to find her father --- dead or alive.