In a world divided between the prosperous City and the destitute Quarters, the pursuit of eternal life has evolved into a booming industry.At the centre of this world lies the City itself — affluent yet restrictive, safe and sterile to the point where swearing is a punishable offence. The City is encircled by a wall, beyond which sprawl the gritty and impoverished Quarters — free, wild, and full of violence. 

Beyond the Quarters are the Outskirts, with conditions so dire that people are forced to raise children for slaughter — upon reaching the age of 20, they are required to sell their souls. 

These very souls are the City’s foremost object of prestige-driven consumption, the primary substance of abuse, and the ultimate status game. A technology invented by the enigmatic scientist N. allows one to transplant a soul from donor to recipient, whereby the recipient rejuvenates — while the donor dies. Yet once you embark on soul transplants, you enter a slippery slope, needing ever more transplants, each soul costing a fortune. And then there are side effects...

At the heart of it all stands the Auction House, selecting, selling, and transplanting souls — a focal point of the novel’s intrigue, revolving around the main characters, each with an agenda and a quest of their own.Varlam, an intellectual prodigy plucked from the grim alleys of the Quarters and groomed by N. to helm the Soul Bank, is calling the shots. Learning of the identity of the next recipient, he sees an opportunity to exact revenge on Adrian, the new King of the Quarters, responsible for his mother’s death. With cold resolve, he plots to use the person closest to Adrian as a soul donor.

Adrian, born and raised in the inner circle of the King of the Quarters, has only recently seized power. Outwardly a ruthless thug determined to claim a soul to solidify his rule, he is still just a damaged kid capable of deep feelings, carefully preserving a secret that shapes his every ambition and action to protect his best friend and the love of his life.

Adrian is very careful about concealing his true feelings for his childhood friend — in the Quarters, queer love is not only condemned; gays are publicly and brutally executed. The young King’s sensitive side is a vulnerability that can undermine his authority over the Quarters’ violent gangs — and interfere with his plan to topple the City’s empire. Adrian is determined to grasp power in the City after the soul’s transplantation. What he is unaware of is who has been chosen to become his soul donor.