Jayde will do anything to bring back Soleste, the girl she loved, even highly taboo necromancy—or she would, if the spell would work. When a stranger named Barrick catches her after the murder that marks her fourth failed attempt, he blackmails her into using her illegal magic to help him infiltrate a local alchemy cult. Jayde agrees, hoping that the cult will provide answers about Soleste’s murder, and binds Barrick with a magical oath that enforces a truce between them until the final initiation.

She’s certain that the lifeblood of Soleste’s murderer is the missing ingredient to her resurrection spell, but which cult member is responsible? Her investigation reveals that Soleste may have been keeping secrets of her own. As Jayde and Barrick cheat their way through the cult’s hierarchy, she feels drawn to him in a way that can’t be fully attributed to their magically-enforced alliance—which, due to a translation error in the spell, makes her swoon every time their skin touches.

In the end, she’ll have to choose between allowing her grief to sink her deeper into dark magic, or claiming her frightening power in service of a new and uncertain future.