Maeve, daughter of Lord Sean of Sevenwaters, was badly burned as a child and carries the legacy of that fire in her crippled hands. After ten years, she's returning home, having grown into a courageous, forthright woman with a special gift for gentling difficult animals. But while her body's scars have healed, her spirit remains fragile, fearing the shadows of her past. Maeve returns to Sevenwaters to find the country in turmoil after Prince Mac Dara's desperate attempts to return his only son to the Otherworld put innocents in peril.