Sixteen-year-old Julia Hamilton is restless. Determined not to be left behind againstuck in the cold house where her mother died ten years earlier, with only her dreams to keep her companyJulia begs her father to take her with him on his next expedition. When he unexpectedly agrees, Julia is intrigued. Will this be her chance at adventure and romance? Traveling across the sands of the ancient world known as the Levant, Julia meets a French antiques collector, a British horticulturist, and a dashing young studenteach harboring secrets as elusive as a mirage.As she learns more about her companions and the dangerous world she's in, Julia must decide whom she can trust . . . and what she is willing to fight for.