Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home.

But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden's eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limited time she has left

Spoiler:

[SIZE="4"]From the moment of their escape, Rhine and Gabriel are constantly in danger. First, the police are after them for stealing their escape boat; then, they run straight into the eerie den of Madame, an old woman who collects and sells girls to the highest bidders. Worst of all, Rhine’s father-in-law Vaughn seems able to find her wherever she goes.

Rhine manages to make the long journey home only to find it abandoned, her twin brother Rowan nowhere to be found. And when she discovers several of their treasured possessions are also gone, she realizes that he won't be back. Rhine's determination to find her brother remains steadfast, until she finds herself crippled by illness...and then, once again, at her father-in-law’s mercy. Fearing for Gabriel's safety, she reluctantly leaves him behind and, unbelievably, returns to the one place she never wanted to see again.