Ari Sullivan is alive - for now. She wakes at the bottom of a cistern, confused, injured and alone, with only the shadowy recollection of a low-pitched voice and a gloved hand. The killer is planning a gruesome masterpiece, a fairytale tableau of innocence and blood. Until now, Ari was happy to spend her days pining for handsome, recent-arrival Stroud Bellows, fantasizing about their two-point-four-kids future together. Safe in her small hometown of Dempsey Hollow. But now her community has turned very dangerous - and Ari may not be the only intended victim.