Merrick Darling's life is better than most.
As the daughter of a powerful lord, she wants for nothing - yet she will never inherit her family's Manor. Her only options are a smart marriage, or to live at the kindness of her practical and regimented elder sister, Essie.
Until the day her father dies in mysterious circumstances, and Merrick is torn from her glamorous New London society life to Norland House, her family's mist-shrouded ancestral home.
But the Manor has changed while Merrick has been away. Once strong and capable, Essie is withdrawn and frightened, and with good reason.
The borders - their main defence against the toxic mist that has claimed much of their nation, and the deadly monsters that lurk within - have been failing for unknown reasons.
When Essie goes missing, it's clear that Merrick needs help. But who can she trust when everyone seems to be scheming, and all she holds true feels like it's slipping out of her grasp?
