Ink

In Saintstone, people’s lives are recorded on their skin, and after death their skin is turned into a book that may be kept by family or burned if the person is judged unworthy. Leora has been raised to trust this system, but after her father dies, an impossible mark and missing information raise doubts about who he really was.

As Leora trains and works within the marking tradition, she begins uncovering secrets about her father, her society, and the rules that govern remembrance and forgetting. She is pushed to question what she has been taught about the marked, the unmarked, truth, and the people she trusts most.

The story follows her growing confusion and determination as hidden history, folklore, and social prejudice come into focus. The mystery deepens toward revelations about her family and her world, ending with a setup that points beyond this volume and leaves questions unresolved.