Randall, a fox, finds himself fleeing from his life in the city of Lakehurst into the woods of his childhood after his friend Harley, a hare priest, is declared a heretic by the new Bishop of Lakehurst. Along with Harley's stag champion, Samuel, the young squirrels Lois and Michael, and Marta, the black cat user of magic, he will have to find a way out of the clutches of Sheriff Malcolm and to Port Wintersong-where salvation might lie with the realm's archbishop or king.

This revised edition has been extensively reworked to restore the original human (or fox) written text before any alterations were made using generative AI.