Between the living and the dead is the Order of the Deacons, protectors of the Empire, guardians against possession, sentinels enlisted to ward off malevolent hauntings by the geists . . .

Among the most powerful of the Order is Sorcha Faris, now thrust into a partnership with the novice Deacon Merrick Chambers. They have been dispatched to the isolated village of Ulrich to aid a Priory besieged by a surge of violent geist activity. With them is Raed Roosin, Pretender to the throne that Sorcha is sworn to protect, and bearer of a terrible curse.

But what greets them in the strange settlement is something far more predatory and more horrifying than any mere haunting. And as she uncovers a tradition of twisted rituals passed down through the dark reaches of history, Sorcha will be forced to reconsider everything she thinks she knows. Even is she makes it out of Ulrich alive, what in the hell is she returning to.

'An incredibly rich story . . . rich in high action, rich in mystery, rich in characters, rich in ghosts. Absolutely not to be missed.'Barb Hendee, coauthor of the Noble Dead sage