As the illegitimate daughter of a drunk and a harlot, eighteen-year-old Remy struggles to be seen as worthy of her Monarch gift to control the minds of the zombie-like Husks that have destroyed the outside world. So when she’s chosen to be considered as the great Shepherd’s possible successor, she’s overjoyed at the chance to prove herself. Except the murdering Monarch who’s promised to kill her for the last decade has also been chosen, so she’ll have to guard her mind closely if she wants to survive alongside him in the Shepherd’s Manor.

Nineteen-year-old Silas has been in chains since he tried to escape the Bastion ten years ago, and his jailer has done everything in his power to make sure he will be the strongest, deadliest Monarch vying for the Shepherd’s throne. Because they both know that for all the chosen except the successor, the Manor is a death sentence. Still, Silas is eager for the Shepherd to destroy the idealistic notions of the girl who condemned him to slavery.

But when the reality of the Manor and the secrets it hides are so much more horrific than Silas imagined, he’ll have to join forces with Remy if he wants to uncover the truth of their world and, just maybe, survive it.