High in the hills of Scotland, an ancient evil has returned. One young woman struggling to master her magic is the only hope to stop it… On the cusp of womanhood, Georjie longs to unlock the full force of her fae-given powers. So when she’s invited to Scotland, she’s eager to explore the Highlands’ famed fairy realm hoping to find a mentor. But instead of unearthing a teacher, she discovers a mummified body within the walls of a seventeenth-century ruin. Teaming up with a handsome amateur historian, she uses her earth-elemental gift to overturn the secrets hidden deep in the soil. But never far from the trail of clues lurks a shadowy creature on the hunt for prey. And Georjie fears it may have found its first target when a local girl vanishes, only to be discovered in an open grave with her life slipping away… Can Georjie break the curse before ancient evil claims an innocent victim?

Her power has attracted the wrong kind of attention. Now a centuries-old witch wants to burn her at the stake… Blackmouth, Scotland. After managing to bury a vicious witch with her elemental magic, Georjie is horrified to learn entombing the spellcaster in soil has enabled the dark woman to rise again…and time is running out. Their romance blossoming in spite of the threat, Georjie and Lachlan travel to Dundee for clues to the fiend’s power. Learning that the ashes of three Wise will increase Daracha's power, and the ultimate goal is the destruction of the veil between worlds, Georjie realizes she's in way over her head. When the vengeful hag's shadowy pet demon comes after her, Georjie narrowly escapes into the Fae realm. There, she’s warned against returning to face the danger by someone who has tangled with the witch before. She's encouraged to start a new life within the protection Queen Elphame's realm can provide. But Georjie won’t let the monster roam free, even if it means risking her own life. Can Georjie unlock her magic or will the black witch claim her ashes?

Make a deal with the fae at your own risk… Tricked into a slippery alliance, Georjie has no choice but to trust the only being with enough power to stop the black witch. All she has to do is lure Daracha to the right place at the right time using herself as bait, and the formidable queen will do the rest. Georjie gets a surprise visit she hopes will help her uncover why her father left all those years ago, but uprooting the truth is easier said than done. When her search leads her to unlock a secret message from the fae realm instead, she learns the dark witch's life is inextricably tied to the life of an innocent. If one dies, so does the other. Faced with an impossible choice and not enough time to make it, can Georjie make the deadline, save the innocent AND outwit the devastating fiend who craves her ashes?