The Dard-e-Dils are known for their clavicles and love of stories. Aliya may not have inherited her family's patrician looks, but she is just as much a prey to the legends of her family that stretch back to the days of Timur Lane. Aristocratic and eccentric, the clan has plenty of stories to tell and secrets to hide, particularly its curse of 'not-quite' twins, and it is not long before Aliya begins to believe that she is another 'not-quite twin' cosmically connected with her Aunt Mariam in a way that hardly bodes well.