Clara Blackwood is an orphan from the poorest streets of Cinder-End, until the High Regent suddenly claims her as the lost heir of an ancient royal bloodline. Dragged into the Obsidian Keep and crowned with the terrifying Diadem of Blackwood, Clara discovers that the crown is no ornament. It is a prison, a weapon, and the key to a power that has slept for centuries.The court says Queen Anastasia Blackwood died long ago and that her bloodline ended with her. The truth is darker. Anastasia was murdered by conspirators led by Valerian Ravenscroft, who bound her immortal wolf spirit inside the diadem and used it to seize control of the empire. Her descendants survived in the gutters, hidden from the very men who hunted them.Now Clara is the living heir the ancient relic has been waiting for.As the diadem awakens, so does the primal wolf within her. Clara must survive a court that intends to use her, a poison meant to silence her, and a Regent who plans to sacrifice her before she can reclaim the throne. Beside her stands Commander Finnian Hart, whose loyalty may be the difference between captivity and rebellion.Clara has spent her life being treated as less than human.Now the empire will learn what happens when the Wolf Queen rises. As the Solstice Banquet approaches, Clara can no longer hide behind the identity the empire gave her. She must uncover the full truth of Anastasia's murder, master the ancient power in her blood, and decide what kind of queen she will become when the throne is finally hers. The ancient wolf remembers. The throne will answer. The wolf waits