Delphernia Undersea is a turnaway girl. She has spent her whole life in the cloister, hidden from sea and sky, expected to silently turn music into gold. Making shimmer, Mother Nine calls it. But Delphernia can't make shimmer and she would rather sing than stay silent. So when she has the chance to leave the cloister, she takes it. But the outside world is not how Delphernia imagined - and she soon discovers it will take courage to truly change her fate.