Twelve-year-old Crow is a thief.
 
Scraping a living on the winding streets of Starsgard, Crow works for the leader of the criminal underworld, stealing from the city's wealthy ruling class. But when a routine job takes Crow to the home of a mysterious sorcerer, his whole life is turned upside down - and after a planned heist goes wrong, leaving Crow alone and with nowhere to turn, he finds himself a new position as the sorcerer's apprentice.
 
Before long, Crow is introduced to the ancient art of dream magic - catching dream essence and using it to create dreams for the rich citizens from whom he once stole. But when Crow learns of an ancient strain of nightmare magic that threatens to unleash devastation on Starsgard, he must make a terrible choice... and decide who he can really trust.