The Great Houses of Paris-headed by Fallen angels and magicians-have co-existed in fragile peace. When a powerful explosion razes House Harrier, old alliances are torn apart and a race begins to fill the power void. Thuan, the beleaguered dragon head of House Hawthorn, finds a war on his doorstep. Aurore, once cast out by Harrier and almost beaten to death, seeks power to protect her family-and must venture back to her former home. And, in the ruins of House Harrier, Emmanuelle desperately tries to piece together her fragmented memories of the explosion. But beneath House Harrier awaits a fiery magic that hungers for destruction. And it is time for Houses and Houseless to stand together-or be engulfed in flames...