First published 2026
Vesper Holloway keeps her family's underground club running in an alternate 1920s London where magic is illegal. Her customers come for enchanted cocktails and spell powder that add excitement to their evenings. Then a patron drinking a Flotation Fizz meant to lift him inches off the ground crashes into the ceiling instead. Similar accidents plague other magical establishments across the city. Maxwell Ashbridge arrives to investigate. He works for the government agency that enforces the magic ban, and he holds a grudge against magical families. But he remembers Vesper from his friendship with her brother, and he finds himself drawn to her. Maxwell offers Vesper a deal. He will protect her club from prosecution if she helps him infiltrate other speakeasies to find whoever is contaminating the magic supply. As they work together, their old attraction reignites. The magical accidents grow worse while Parliament debates repealing the ban. Vesper and Maxwell must choose between their opposing loyalties and the connection sparking between them.
Genres: romance, mystery, fantasy, adult-fiction, historical-fantasy
Vibes: atmospheric, fast-paced, intriguing, romantic, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, forced-proximity, found-family, second-chance-romance
Setting: London, Parliament
Period: 1920s
352 pages · Paperback · Atria Books