In this, the bind up of The Initiation and The Captive Part 1, is the start of Cassie's story. Forced to move from sunny California to gloomy New England, Cassie is homesick - until she forms a bond with a group of teenagers at her school. This clique rules the school - no one dare cross them - but Cassie feels a strange kinship with them, and when she is initiated into their 'secret circle' she is both terrified and thrilled to be part of a coven of witches that have controlled New Salem for hundreds of years...But then Cassie falls in love. Now she has a tough decision to make: does she walk away, or does she step over to the dark side?