"A child's life hangs in balance... in this we are certain." In the age of science and gunpowder, what place could magic hold? When a high-profile murder is dumped in her lap, Draius isn't worried about magic. City Guard politics are brutal and the captain makes it clear her job is on the line; there are plenty of rivals waiting for her to fail, including her estranged husband. More killings follow. Draius endures threats and attacks as she uncovers a treasonous conspiracy, one that hopes to revive necromantic magic. But when they graduate to murder by magic and her own son is threatened, she has to get magical help. She must step into the minds of the Phrenii, the five elementals who protect Tyrra's children and departed souls, risking her sanity to fight magic with magic. Even the Phrenii cannot foresee the coming catastrophe. "Reeve (Pathfinder, 2010, etc.) begins a new fantasy series in which the defenders of magic must flush out a sect of necromancers... A lavish blend of urban crime and high fantasy." -- Kirkus Reviews