Leaving his life of petty crime and drug abuse behind, young Douglas flees from Minneapolis to Scotland, to his stern but fair-minded Grandma McLaren, who will take him in if he can support himself. Fortunately, few cities are friendlier than Edinburgh to a guitarist with a talent for spontaneous rhyme, and soon Douglas is making a living as the busker who can write a song about you on the spot. But Edinburgh has its dangers for the unwary... and when Douglas falls prey to the drugs proffered by a mysteriously alluring young woman, suddenly he can see, in all their beauty and terrifying cruelty, the fey folk who invisibly share Edinburgh's ancient streets. Worse, they can see him, and they're determined to draw him into their own internecine wars - wars that are fought to the death.

Once an American busker on the streets of Edinburgh, Douglas was seduced by the fey folk who invisibly share the city, becoming entangled in their own internecine wars. Douglas now sits on the throne of Faery - holding the Queen and the land hostage with his powerful magic and his unflinchingly loyal lieutenant, Martes. Meanwhile, in Western Massachusetts, a strange infant is left on the doorstep of an ex-marine who may have the second sight. And back in Scotland, the granddaughter of a murdered woman sifts through clues trying to prove her brother isn't the killer…