In a famous family of exceptionally talented people, fifteen-year-old Claire Walker is ordinary—or so she leads everyone to believe. Yet the minute she steps out of line, her parents transfer her to Cambial Academy: the prestigious boarding school that her great-grandfather founded for students with supernatural abilities, or "specials."

Although Claire can't see ghosts or move objects with her mind like the other students, she does have a special she considers too lame to admit. Just as she is settling in, one by one the most talented students—the Exceptionals—go missing. In an attempt to find out what happened to them, Claire uncovers a dark prophecy foretelling a mysterious girl who will use her ability to save Cambial students from a dire fate.

Could she be that girl? Does the gorgeous but secretive boy she meets in the woods know more than he's letting on? After years of ignoring her special, Claire decides the time has come to embrace her ability—before it's too late.