After the events of the last novel, Paige is back in her old life in the Syndicate, London’s Underground crime ring of clairvoyants. She wants to fight back and do something about what she witnessed in Oxford and expose the oppressive authoritarian government but she doesn’t know what to do next: no one would believe her if she just told the truth as it sounds too fantastical, and the leaders of the Syndicate, who could make a difference, don’t want to hear her – too self interested in maintaining the status quo, not willing to see the threat. With nowhere else to go and no resources of her own, she can’t make a break and instead must figure out how to make a difference while picking her old day job back up.
While on a task from Jaxon, her boss, she stumbles on a crime scene – the head of the underworld and his team have been murdered. Now, Paige has to make sure to keep suspicion of murder from herself, while Jaxon prepares to put in his bid to participate in the combat trial to become the next Underking. On the side, Paige continues to investigate and discovers that the corruption of Scion goes deeper than she ever realized.
I enjoyed this sequel and the added complexity and depth it gave to this world as it opened up the layers of Scion London and its crime world, while also dealing with Paige’s frustrations. She doesn’t fit into who she was before and she has seen enough to know she wants more than simply to be someone who has power in a corrupt system. She wants change, she wants to feel worthy of the trust placed in her in Oxford, the lives lost but doesn’t know how to navigate these questions in the existing system.