Waking up this morning was the last thing Charlotte Pudding expected to do. Now she is with Vole Drakeforth and a mysterious woman on a quest to find the only man who knows what is really going on. In the desert country of Pathia, where ideas are hard currency, they search for answers and a tree. It will take more than an ex-wife, a revolution, and the mystery of a famous Arthurian artefact to stop Charlotte from uncovering the ultimate truth.