Set Sloter isn’t new to strange and frightening assignments: in the city of Ure, where stone gargoyles serve as gatekeepers and zombies smash stone in the mines, evil spirits, magic, and trouble go hand in hand. But when help is requested by the Vicount of La-Mann de Fronsac, even Sloter hesitates. One thing is to shoot a werewolf, drive a stake into a vampire’s heart, or banish a ghost from a family manor. And quite another is to stand against Fate itself, which has set De Fronsac’s death hour. To fight this dark turn of events, Set must accept an invitation to the Royal Masquerade.