Sixteen-year-old Faith has always known she was different and her peers never let her forget it; she can communicate with the dead, she can start fires with a flick of her wrist and that she can transform into a sleek black panther. She's just never known why. Faith is relieved when her cold father and distant relatives raise no objections to her invitation to an elite school for the gifted. Which, coincidentally, happens to be where her parents met.In her search for answers, Faith meets the charismatic Lex, a senior with eyes like snow who looks at Faith with such intensity. He beckons her with his mysterious powers and knowledge of her mother. Finally, she'll know why she can do things others can't. She ignores the warnings of her new school friends to stay away from him. But when a hidden ability frightens them all, Lex hints at an unspeakable darker truth to her origins and the true nature of her abilities.