Summary

The novel is narrated from the first person point of view. Chapter 1 is narrated by Mare Barrow. Mare, wearing a collar and shackles, describes being held captive by Maven. Maven, the King of Norta, displays her in front of a Silver-blooded audience in Caesar’s Square. He tells them that Mare is the leader of the Scarlet Guard, a terrorist organization. She wonders about a message that she broadcast to Norta before her capture and the ensuing riots, and whether the group signals the beginning of a revolution or the end of one. She thinks that Maven will not kill her, but instead keep her tormented. She sees Lord Volo and his children, Ptolemus and Evangeline, in the crowd and reminisces on Ptolemus killing her brother Shade. She wonders where her friends, Cal, Kilorn, and Cameron, and her brothers, Bree and Tramy, are...