The rules are simple, the system cruel: the lower classes must give ten years in service to Britain's powerfully gifted rulers. With one uprising crushed by the glittering elite, commoners and aristocrats alike now take sides for a final confrontation. At the center of it all: Abi Hadley and her brother, Luke. Each has reason to hate the ruling Jardine family. But to end the shining tyranny, Abi, Luke, and Silyen Jardine find themselves bound by a single destiny. And the cost is almost too terrible to contemplate.... -- adapted from publisher info