As an orphan scrounging in the lawless slums, young Severn Handred didn’t have the luxury of believing in anything beyond his own survival. Now he’s crossed the river and entered the heart of the empire: the city of Elantra. When Severn is spotted tailing some lawmen of the Hawks — a not insignif­i­cant feat to go other­wise unde­tected — the recruiter for the Impe­rial Wolves thinks he should join their ranks. The Wolves are a small, select group that work within the Halls of Law, reporting directly to the Eternal Emperor. Severn hopes to avoid the law — he certainly had no inten­tion of joining it.

In order to become a wolf — even on proba­tion — Severn must face the inves­ti­ga­tors most dreaded throughout the Empire: The Tha’alani, readers of minds. No secret is safe from their prying, no knowl­edge can remain buried. But Severn’s secret, never shared before, is not enough to prevent the Wolves from adopting him as one of their own. All men have secrets, after all. Severn’s first job will be joining a hunt, but between the treach­erous poli­tics of the High Court, the almost unnat­ural interest of one of the Lords, and those who wish long-held secrets to remain buried forever, the trick will be surviving it.