Tiffany leaves the Chalk for the first time to train as a witch under the eccentric Miss Level. But something is following her - a hiver, an ancient parasitic entity that takes over minds and burns through them. Tiffany must learn what it means to be a witch - not the pointy hat and the broomstick, but the real work of tending to the people nobody else cares for. The book where the Tiffany Aching series finds its voice.