Jantalus Kathias remembers his mother's murder with perfect clarity. Unfortunately, it's the only thing he remembers. Found unconscious in the company of a dying man, his rescuers learn only his name. Jantalus cannot explain who he is, why a strange, uncontrollable magic courses through his veins or how he came to bear the black-eyed mark of the dead.
With fragments of memories he cannot be sure are real his only guide, Jantalus sets off on a journey to discover who he was, who he is, and who, ultimately, he will be.
Hunted by assassins with a knowledge of his past and taunted by the fear that he may never know the truth, Jantalus soon finds himself facing a past that might not be worth uncovering.