Kora has always been different. Born into privilege and power, Kora has always struggled with the way her people use their magic. She hates how casually they manipulate emotions with a brush of skin against skin, and that's just those who mean no harm. Kora wants to change the world she lives in, but is powerless to do so. After tragedy rips her family apart, Kora begins to think that no one else feels the way she does, that no one understands. And then she finds it: her great-aunt's journal. Buried in those pages she finds a kindred spirit, a map, and a prophecy. Now Kora has to make a choice.