Monsters are real. Well, monstros are, anyway - an emerging group of citizens trying to find their place in Brindlewatch, ever since the Camillites made a splash in the small town of Quixx, and the Jettites climbed out of their subterranean city beneath Lake Mallion. The Far Cities are bristling with newcomers looking for a fresh start in this brand-new world, but is it as safe for them as they think? Sable, a Camillite who still lives on Mount Quixx, isn't so sure. She sees the world through the distorted lens of the novels she steals from Professor Bedouin's observatory and is slow to trust the strangers in the world beyond the page. She is a side-character in her own story, and she wants to keep it that way. But a desperate letter begging for help rewrites Sable as the protagonist sleuth of her favourite novels, and hot on the trail trying to find her vanished friend, Sable uncovers more than she bargained for in the bright lights of the big city: a famous author with the ability to make every monstro's dream come true, a dastardly underworld targeting vulnerable monstros, and a sweet bookseller who may be at the heart of the mystery. And on the airwaves, a broadcast like no other promises a bold new world for everyone. Will Sable find her voice and save those terrified of speaking up, before it's too late?