A merciless tyrant forces an ordinary woman to rescue his children from a malevolent magical wood in this eerie, twisted fable. A world of uncanny creatures, deadly beauty, and unthinkable violence beckons... At the northern edge of a valley conquered by a ruthless foreign tyrant lies a wild forest ruled by dangerous magic. The local people know never to enter-for no one who strays into the north woods is ever seen again. No one, that is, except Veris Thorn. When the children of the Tyrant vanish into the woods, Veris is summoned to rescue them. Veris knows she has only one day before the creatures in the wood claim the children for their own. If she fails, the Tyrant will destroy everything she loves. If she is to succeed, Veris must evade traps and trickery, ancient monsters and false friends, and the haunting memory of her last journey into the woods. Time is running short. One misstep will cost everything.