To the world, Lady Santabella is a wise, old soothsayer performing at the acclaimed Cirque de Lune. But then again, appearances can be deceiving.
Arianna Santabella lies for a living. As a soothsayer, she makes up stories to satisfy her customers, and as a performer, she knows that no one would ever take her seriously if they realized she was actually a sixteen-year-old girl.
Life is going pretty well for Ari despite the fact that she can't remember the first eight years of it. She's the most successful act at Cirque de Lune; her boss is more like a mother; and the boy she likes actually likes her back. Never mind the constant nightmares and shameless guilt that her lying brings her. With winter break only one day away, Ari knows that she can unwind and come up with new ways to convince herself that what she's doing is for the best.
But soon everything changes when a strange boy wearing a top hat comes to visit her tent, and not only knows her true identity, but takes her away from the only life she's ever known. Soon, Ari is plunged in an underground world where everyone has a secret to keep, and where she might just find out more about herself than she ever thought possible.