Bright and shy, Ember Gillespie was sent away from her home and her family when she was little. Finally allowed to return at the age of sixteen, she is shocked to learn the reason her mother sent her away: she believes the town is inhabited by violent and meddlesome demons.Ember knows her mother is crazy. But as she gets to know some of the locals, she realizes she may also be right.Bright and shy, Ember Gillespie was sent away from her home and her family when she was little; her sister Thalia, always her mother's favorite, got to stay. She spent years earning the right to come back, and to make up for a transgression she never understood. When she finally gets home at the age of sixteen, the realization that her family doesn't want her there is nearly more than she can bear. Her grandmother has become senile, her mother is manic, and her sister is a brainwashed shadow of who she used to be. The only thing more shocking than their rejection is the reason they want her leave--Ember's mother believes that the town they live in is inhabited by demons, and that Ember is too weak to fend for herself.Ember knows her mother is crazy. But as she gets to know some of the locals, she also begins to believe she might be right.

It's been a difficult year for Abilene Collins. Since her father's death, her whirlwind life of adventure and travel has come to an end.Now, she's living with her mysterious uncle. He's a man with secrets, living almost alone in a ridiculously large mansion that he doesn't own. He doesn't like questions, and when Lena starts asking, it isn't hard to tell that he's hiding family secrets.It's been a difficult year for Abilene Collins. Since her father's death, her whirlwind life of adventure and travel has come to an end.Now, she's living with her mysterious uncle. He's a man with secrets, living almost alone in a ridiculously large mansion that he doesn't own. He doesn't like questions, and when Lena starts asking after the enigma of his job, it isn't hard to tell that he's hiding some family secrets.Family portraits have been removed from the walls, and areas of the house are off limits. Some rooms even seem to have been walled off completely. No one will talk to her.The young and ambitious groundskeeper has become her only friend, and one day he tells her that she was stolen from her mother years before. Lena's family are all telepathic, and that isn't all. They're a religious pillar of the Silenti society. Her grandfather has used his religious standing to gain political power, decimating his rivals along with anyone who gets in his way. Suddenly thrust into a life of political plots and religious fanatics, Lena finds herself struggling to navigate her own life. Some people aren't fond of the Darays, and the family has nearly died out through assassination.It appears Lena is the latest target.