​Thirteen-year-old Cassiana is about to inherit her father’s role as Vigil Guard—commander of the monster slayers. But she wants nothing to do with it. She’s tired of endless war and senseless bloodshed. When her mother insists she accept her family's legacy, Cassiana flees into the deep woods and meets Banasar, a serpent with a dark wit and stories as alluring as the forest itself. Cassiana’s unflinching spirit and off-kilter curiosity intrigue him, and a forbidden bond begins to form.

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Believing the serpent to be a gift from the Woodland—and determined to protect him from those who would destroy him—Cassiana keeps their friendship secret. But Banasar’s growing power and unsettling demands soon test the limits of her trust. When violence strikes close to home, Cassiana must choose: embrace the expectations of her family and people or forge an even more daring path of her own.

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In a world that fears what it doesn't understand, Cassiana must decide what it truly means to know a monster.

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