In the post-apocalyptic, neo-medieval city of Ark, speech is constrained to 500 sanctioned terms. If somewhere had been to speak outside that approved lexicon, they’d encounter banishment. The just exceptions to this rule are the Wordsmith and his apprentice, Letta. Together, they will be the keepers and archivists of all language. However when Letta’s grasp dies, she is all of a sudden promoted to Wordsmith and finds the situation more complicated than she understood. While satisfying her charge to get and save terms, she uncovers a sinister intend to suppress language also to rob Ark’s residents of their power of talk. Quickly, she realizes that it is now not just up to her to save Ark’s language but also its entire culture…