In a distant time and far-off kingdom, life is hard. People don't have enough to eat, and winter is upon them. There's little that offers hope, and many turn to the legends of Jackaroo—the masked outlaw hero who rides at night giving aid to the helpless and coin to the destitute—for solace.

Gwyn, the innkeeper's lively daughter, is too practical to believe such tales. But when she is stranded during a snowstorm in a cabin with the lordling Gaderian, and finds a strange garment that resembles the costume Jackaroo is said to wear, she begins to wonder. Hidden away in an old forgotten cupboard, Gwyn discovers a package—a cloak, a mask, a sword... Jackaroo? Could the stories be true?

It takes a shock and a devastating betrayal for Gwyn to begin to understand what—and who—Jackaroo really is. And she comes to know what part she will play in discovering the truth, such as it may be, behind the legends.