Being a princess keeps Sofia the First pretty busy. So much so that Clover the rabbit feels left out and decides to hit the road with a traveling magician.

"Simon Grenville has his own reasons for wanting to destroy Alex Reynell. The man used to be his best friend, until his practice of the dark arts almost killed Simon's sister. The beautiful half-naked stranger Simon meets in the woods may be the perfect instrument for his revenge. It will just take a little time to teach her the necessary etiquette and assemble a proper wardrobe. But as each day passes, Simon is less sure he wants Joan anywhere near Reynell. Because no spell in the world will save his future if she isn't in it."

Very strange occurrences have long surrounded fourteen-year-old Bran, who learns of his link to a curse created by his murdered mother and strives to make things right, hindered by the ban on magic in the city of Dunce and pursued by his mother's former masters.

In alternating voices, sixteen-year-old Chicagoan Anne and handsome, magical Ethan tell of their fated quest to rescue Russian Grand Duchess Anastasia, who tells of her long captivity in the hut of legendary witch Baba Yaga.