Eilean is rising. A foundling raised in an abbey, she was entrusted by its imprisoned druid, Mordaunt, with an ancient tome. Its magical words can change the world. Eilean's first mission: translate it. Her second: rescue a benevolent Aldermaston sentenced to death as a heretic by the High Seer. But wielding power, knowledge, and ambition has now made Eilean the hunted.

In pursuit is Captain Hoel Evnissyen, an inquisitor in service to the High Seer's demands. His objective is to track Eilean and steal Mordaunt's invaluable work. But Hoel's quest soon yields a fascination with the woman he's been ordered to pursue. When an invasion begins and the world erupts in chaos, Eilean and Hoel find themselves bound by their mutual wills to survive and, against all odds, realize they are not each other's enemy.

But now Eilean must decide who is friend and who is foe. Especially when the powerful tome falls into the wrong hands. The closer Eilean and Hoel get, the nearer they are to realizing the part they must play in their kingdom's destiny - and its ties to Eilean's own mysterious past.