When Daeron's mother, Captain Sanya, is offered a risky but lucrative job, rescuing an experimental galinium scientist from Aldegar, the lost loves lurking in her past mean she must send Daeron away to the other end of the galaxy to the father he's never met on the Kyleri Empire's capital, Jiwani.On Jiwani, the heir to the galaxy's most powerful empire, Prince Osvai, balances deference to rigid Kyleri customs with his desire to explore the forbidden secrets of the Royal Baths, and the dark pursuits no prince should have.But when a mysterious stranger from the Outer Verge turns up to work with his ambitious Uncle Viscamon, Osvai's temptations lead him into a web of intrigue that could change the Galactic Balance forever.As Sanya, Daeron, and Osvai pursue their forbidden desires, they become entwined in a galactic power struggle stretching from the frozen tundra of Jansen to the searing memories of Captain Ales's lost homeworld, Teva.They'll soon discover all love has consequence, and the more forbidden the desires, the more deadly the pursuits.