This is the story of how magic dies. The year is 2602. Formless invaders known as the otherkind have ravaged Earth, using their alien magic to kidnap humans to take as hosts and to conquer more and more territory across the planet. Humanity is just a shadow of its former self, with the last remaining humans forced to live in small territories across the planet. Keys-highly trained soldiers using otherkind-hybrid parasites to wield magic-are Earth's last hope for survival. 20 year old Solene DeLume has just fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a key like her famous mother: Ara DeLume, the Firebird of New York. But Solene quickly finds out that standing in Ara's shadow is the least of her concerns when her parasite begins to talk to her, threatening to take over her body. As Solene continues to fight against the otherkind, she quickly learns that being a key is not what it seems, and that her mom knows much more about the ugly side of being a key than she lets on. Universe United is keeping secrets from her. Her own mom is keeping secrets from her. Solene must discover the truth of being a key before the truth of being a key destroys her.
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