In 1899 Manhattan, the drowning of beautiful Elizabeth Holland, daughter of New York society's ruling family, brings to the surface the scandalous behavior of several teenagers of varying social class.

Shadow-kissed Rose is hunted by the immortal undead that are seeking vengeance on her for her Strigoi kills, which puts her in a terrible position that could result in the death one of the two people she values most, her best friend Lissa, or her tutor Dimitri Belikov, the man she loves.

Diana and Elizabeth Holland, two of Manhattan's favorite socialites, show new signs of maturity as Elizabeth tries to deal with a secret from the past, and Diana is forced to make a decision about her future; meanwhile, Carolina finds that money can buy happiness, and Penelope learns the pleasures of life without Henry.

In 1899, a fifteen-year-old orphan named Hannah obtains employment as a servant in the home of one of Boston's wealthiest families, where she meets a noted portrait painter who seems to know things about her that even she is not aware of, and when she accompanies the family to their summer home in Maine, she feels an undeniable pull to the sea.