In Nordic mythology, Odin hung from the tree of life so that, through this ordeal, he would learn the secret of the runes—the power of language, the ability to craft stories and create meaning. For Arman, the writer son of an American father and Icelandic mother, this challenge has come home in a thoroughly unexpected way.

With a sudden move to the unfamiliar world of fame smothering his creative spark, Arman has found that the one steady place in his life seems be his developing relationship with Callie. In search of a spark, he follows her to a new job—handling public relations for a Northern California logging company. In the redwood forest, Arman encounters Astra, a treesitter who confounds his expectations. Caught between two poles of an intensifying conflict, Arman reaches into his past in search of the key that will allow him to make sense of his surroundings, and negotiate a thicket of choices and consequences, both intended and unforeseen.