Sisters Joely and Maribel have always done everything together-until the summer Maribel turns 14 and receives her crown. Suddenly Joely no longer recognizes the dreamy-eyed young woman who once ran wild with her through the flax-filled fields of their quiet kingdom. Matters become worse when a young lord arrives to court Maribel, pushing Joely into the shadows and further and further away from her carefree childhood. When a series of tragedies sweeps through Feife, it is only the mysterious gift of a book that steadies Joely and gives her the courage to face dark family secrets that begin to tear the family apart even as the threat of war arrives menacingly at their castle doors.