Princess Charlotte's 18th birthday vacation is about to take a turn toward adventure.

Off the northwest coast of Alkebulan, far from her home of Swerighe, Charlotte and her maid Caroline are kidnapped, spirited away on a pirate ship pulled by giant manta rays, and sold as slaves to a reclusive sheikh.

But Charlotte is having none of that. How dare they treat her like this? The determined northlander and her servant are soon joined by Khepri, a healer in the employ of the sheikh, and Christianne, a fellow slave, in a daring plot to regain their freedom.

But so much stands in their way, from marauders and a deadly manticore, to a mysterious oasis that holds secrets they can't begin to fathom. The odds are against Charlotte and her companions surviving and making their way back home.

Alkebulan can be a dangerous place for a foreign princess. Charlotte will be forced to make some major adjustments if she and the others are to survive this journey.

Just when Charlotte thinks she's home free, she discovers the real reason she was kidnapped. Dark deceit and ancient prophecy swirl around her and threaten to swallow her whole.

Caught between two warring factions, Charlotte is pulled into a world of supernatural alchemy and unearthly magic where nothing is as it seems and even the simplest of sights cannot be trusted. She will have to have to shed her old paradigm and completely re-invent herself if she is to survive.