Thirteenth Child, The

Thirteenth Child, The Synopsis

Drawing on the dark fairytales of the Brothers Grimm, this new novel by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of House of Salt and Sorrow is a sweeping, fantastical saga of actions and consequences. All gifts come with a price. Hazel Trépas has always known she wasn't like the rest of her siblings.

A thirteenth child, promised away to one of the gods, she spends her childhood waiting for her godfather-Merrick, the Dreaded End-to arrive. When he does, he lays out exactly how he's planned Hazel's future. She will become a great healer, known throughout the kingdom for her precision and skill.

To aid her endeavors, Merrick blesses the young girl with a gift, the ability to instantly deduce the exact cure needed to treat the sick. But all gifts come with a price. Hazel also recieves the ability to see the image of a deathshead upon her patient-and is tasked with the duty of ending their suffering, permanently.

Hazel grows up, faithfully healing her patients and providing a swift, merciful end to those who the deathshead determines must die. Haunted by the ghosts of those she's killed, Hazel longs to run and, when a boy from a neighboring farm proposes, she accepts and they plan to escape. But when tradgedy strikes, Hazel must make an impossible choice-and accept the unimaginable consquences.