Game of Thrones meets Shadow and Bone in this thrilling medieval mystery from master storyteller Sacha Lamb, about a girl determined to become an alchemist to heal her mother, a grand lady with designs on the throne, and a shape-shifting apprentice with priceless blood.

In the city of Borekaba, a poor Lunesti servant named Mirika longs to become an Alchemist, something forbidden to girls and women. When the elegant Lady Algimanta rides into town, she recruits Mirika. The girl believes she has found her path to greatness and a way to heal her sick mother. Instead, she enters a world of secrecy, exploitation, and forbidden alchemy.

Mirika meets a mute servant, Mari, in Algimanta's workshop. His blood contains quintessence—the divine humor—and his body bears the scars of repeated bloodletting. Mari's ability to transform, using bone amulets, hints at deeper mysteries. As Mirika learns the craft, she becomes entangled in Mari's vulnerability and Algimanta's ambition.