A bewitching historical fantasy from a debut author, and the next global sensation from Tor. A blood-drenched hunt for purpose, power and redemption. A devastating love story. A bewitching twist on history. A blood-drenched hunt for purpose, power, and redemption. In 1785, Professor Sebastian Grave receives the news he fears most: the Beast of Gévaudan has returned, and the French countryside runs red in its wake. Sebastian knows the Beast. Twenty years ago, it nearly cost him his life to bring the monster down. Now, he has been recalled to the hunt by Antoine Avenel d'Ocerne, an estranged lover who shares a dark history with the Beast and a terrible secret with Sebastian. With the help of his indwelling demon, Sarmodel - who takes payment in living hearts - Sebastian must return to Gévaudan for a final reckoning, while the Beast is poised to plunge the continent into war. In this dark retelling of the hunt for the Beast of Gévaudan, Cameron Sullivan tears the heart out of history. He lifts the veil on the hidden world behind our own and reimagines the story of Europe, from Imperial Rome to Saint Jehanne d'Arc and the first flickers of the French Revolution.