19-year-old Daneli is a tomboy who doesn't get along with her mother. She'd rather be riding her horse or perfecting her archery skills than wearing finery and ordering servants around. But as the eldest daughter of House Trageri, Daneli is the inheritor of long-standing tensions, and a mission far larger than she is. First, she must undergo an arduous training process, then pass a series of tests in order to become Queen. Afterward, with the help of ten hand-picked spouses of all genders, along with her secret Gift, it will be her job to create peace between her cooperative, matriarchal nation and the violent, fiercely hierarchical patriarchy to their north. As if that weren't challenge enough, Daneli is also in for a big surprise. A spaceship is speeding toward her colony - and its arrival will change everything.