When a deadly demi-lich needs to be hunted, twenty-year-old Claris defies tradition and vows to destroy it-risking her reputation, her father's standing, and her own life. But to succeed, she must rely on the one man she shouldn't trust: her future father-in-law's infuriatingly handsome garde. Claris has always known her duty-manage the estate while her father recovers, and marry the noble she's been promised to. Yet her rare talent with impalement arts makes her the only one capable of leading the hunt. Winning the respect of her garde is hard enough without Torsten, the vicomte's maddeningly tempting garde, distracting her at every turn. As garde fall, Claris and Torsten are forced into a perilous alliance that tests her skill, her resolve, and her heart. Torsten makes her feel like she could be more than the life laid out for her-but defeating the demi-lich will demand a sacrifice she never imagined. Failure means death. Success might cost her everything else.