When rumors of plague swept through the country, pregnant mothers were sent to the island of ghosts, left to give birth and die alone. But not all of their infants perished. Nusht, one of the forgotten survivors, discovers something on the beach that could break the pattern in which she believes the women and children are trapped. Meanwhile, on the mainland, Fairka awaits her fate at the hands of the Ninety-Nine Divines, ideals to which the country's priests pay homage. Soon her life will be entwined with Nusht's in ways neither of them could have imagined.