All Avery Roe wants is to take her place as the witch of Prince Island, making the charms that keep the whalers safe at sea. But her mother is determined to renounce their magic and steals Avery away from her grandmother"s cottage before she can learn the secrets of the Roe women. Avery has to unlock the magic burning inside her - because the islanders need her, because she loves tattooed harpoon-boy Tane and because the Roe witch cannot be killed...and Avery has foreseen her own murder.