Estes was just fourteen years old and dealing with the loss of his father when The Calamity occurred. Objects of unknown origin had struck near Ignarosa, the capital of Autenon, with the force so great the dust blotted the sky out and led to three months of freezing and unrelenting snow. People died of cold and starvation, and only a few isolated enclaves lived to see the Months of Blizzard end as suddenly as they started. During this time, many plants and animals were also decimated or driven to extinction. In their place, new and dangerous creatures to fill the void, many with a mysterious link to The Calamity itself... Ten years later, Estes and his friend Nikolai are sent out from their home town of Jupa to make contact with survivors further north, and learn what they know of Calamity. Estes also hopes to see Makal, his formerly beautiful birthplace, while Nikolai is searching for the man who betrayed his father. Their journey will take them halfway across the barren lands of Autenon and grow more complex than anyone had imagined... Less