At the Choosing Ceremony four years ago Tobias Eaton left more than an abusive father behind; he also left his younger sister. Now it's time for the Choosing Ceremony again, where Crystal Eaton's future awaits. She decides to go to find her brother, and find out what her new life may have in store for her. Is she prepared for what awaits her there, though? After getting an uncomfortable vibe from Tori, the one who administered the test, she's not sure what to think anymore. After arriving at Dauntless, it's not quite what she thought it was going to be. She's not sure which is worse: the tough initiation process, or the tough Dauntless leader, Eric, who has made it a personal mission of his to make this as hard as possible for her.

Things were finally going her way: her brother was marrying her best friend, she had a group of stable people in her life, her work was helping people across the factions, and she got Eric back. What could go wrong? How about her mother showing up, after Crystal believed her to be dead for nearly 8 long years? Yeah, that's bound to have nasty consequences that could royally screw her life up. Especially when her mother is the leader of the group of people who set fire to a school and nearly killed Eric, not to mention kidnapped and tortured her. There's only one way to solve this problem, and it's not going to be pretty.