Aveline Caine has spent her life trying to ignore the darkness that lurks beneath her skin. Ever since she was a child, shadows have whispered her name, and death has followed in her footsteps. But when her younger brother falls into a mysterious coma, she is left with no choice but to seek out the one place that might hold the answers—the cursed House of Shadows. Every decade, the House calls to those who are marked, summoning them to compete in a deadly tournament where only one emerges victorious. The winner is granted a single wish—one that can break curses, rewrite fate, or even bring back the dead. But the cost of losing is more than just death. The House does not let its players leave easily. Inside the House, Aveline meets Malakai Duskborne, a brooding, secretive man with a past as haunted as the corridors of their prison. He knows more about the House than he should, and the way he watches Aveline sends a shiver down her spine—whether from fear or something far more dangerous, she isn’t sure. Nine trials stand between Aveline and her wish. But as the games unfold, and secrets begin to unravel, she realizes the House is not just testing their strength. It’s testing their souls. And the deeper she delves into its mysteries, the more she starts to question: Did she enter the House to save her brother? Or was she called here for a far darker purpose?