"Reminiscent of Ursula LeGuin's Earthsea books…this proposed series could be a stand-out."

--Publishers Weekly

Enter a land of volcanoes and earthquakes, plagues and typhoons, of island nations separated by water but bound by fear of the spirits they imprisoned to control their volatile environment. In Racing the Dark, the first act in a grand dance of loyalty, love, sacrifice, and death is about to begin.

Like the other women of her nameless backwater island, Lana had always expected to become a diver and harvest precious jewels from a fish native to their surrounding freshwater seas. But during her initiation dive, she receives a horrifying gift—a blood-red jewel that marks her as someone with power. Someone to be used.

Though Lana hides the jewel, the power it represents drives her family away from their home island, and Lana into an apprenticeship with a one-armed witch with a peculiar interest in her fate. The witch hides the extent of her own power (and of her intentions) even as she trains Lana in geas—the spells and incantations that allow humans to sacrifice for control of the spirits.

But powers far greater and intrigues far older than anything she could imagine are driving Lana down a dangerous road. When she dares to use a dark, ancient geas to save her mother's life, she is set onto a path toward becoming a creature beyond her wildest imaginings. A creature of great power...and a perfect pawn of the spirits themselves, in their bid to break free of a millennia-long imprisonment.

A bold new talent in fantasy fiction, 25-year-old Alaya Dawn Johnson has created an unforgettable coming-of-age story set in a world where wielding power requires understanding the true meaning of sacrifice.