On a rainy summer night in 2009, eleven-year-old Danny Beecher’s life changed forever. An intruder killed Danny’s family, along with his best friend, Brian. Danny survived, but at a cost. Ten years later, Danny is released from The Lodge, a long-term mental health care facility. Against the wishes of his doctor, Danny returns to Millfield, MA. The town hasn’t changed much, but there’s something strange going on in Danny’s childhood home. Donald Jacobs, former journalist turned true crime blogger, never believed the man convicted of the Beecher murders was guilty.

Welcome to Bettendorf. At first glance, it seems like a typical Midwestern town, but take a closer look and you might be surprised. High schooler Jack Davies sees the darkness coming; he lives with it. Cold voices call out from the closet door; dead hands reach up from under his bed. Although he doesn't know it, Jack wields a great power. Now, a smooth-talking preacher has come to town promising freedom and redemption for all who follow his words. But like Jack, this preacher has a secret.

After a cataclysmic interstellar war that came very close to exterminating humanity, the Daybreak Republic has risen from the ashes and embarked upon a mission to unite hundreds of human colony worlds under its banner, in hopes of preventing a second and final conflict that will complete the destruction of the human race. But not everyone agrees that the empire's ends justify the means.

Crown Prince Silvyr Quilen is the family disappointment. His father, High King Keryth Quilen of Athowen, wanted a son to follow in his image of an elven warlord who rules with no regard for those around him and will do anything to maintain his power. However, the king finds Silvyr's desire to spend his days in the flowers and libraries to be pathetic and useless. Despite that, Silvyr strives to receive his father's approval.

Greg walked into a bar hoping to wash away the sour taste of a bad day at work. What he got instead was a bartender offering him the opportunity of his dreams—with a catch. A ticket to purchase a class that could make him the strongest being alive. If he can afford the asking price. Thrust into a world he knows nothing about, Greg will need power on another level entirely. To get ahead, he'll need the kind of power only deities possess.