"Four must make their sacrifice. In the realm twixt fire and ice . . . The quest unites both life and death." The wise woman Sheba's ominous words haunt Rowan. The bitter winter has lasted far too long and won't loosen its deadly hold on the land. As food stores dwindle, the people of Rin flee to the warmer coast. Rowan and two friends -- and a shadow -- journey up the mountain that towers over Rin to seek the source of the unending cold. Rowan knows from past experience that the mountain is unpredictable and harbors many dangers. But now waves of freezing air stream down its sides. And ferocious ice creepers -- giant eyeless creatures with gaping jaws and teeth like shards of ice -- slither from its shadow eager to devour any warm being. Will Rowan and his friends somehow be able to bring spring -- and life -- back to the land? Can they survive the perils of the mountain and the attacks of the ice creepers?