Zara is sent by her mother to live with her Grandmother in Maine after her father dies. So already griving and depressed, she has to adjus to a whole new environment. But she soon finds that things are not as they seem and she is in danger from Pixies and has to rely on protection and help from weres. 
 I really liked Zara - she is certainly no wimp despite her depression and the extraordinary circumstances she finds herself in.