Vesper Holloway runs her family's speakeasy in an alternate 1920s London, where magic is outlawed and a pinch of spell powder or an enchanted cocktail still draws a public hungry for wonder.
Magical families keep such clubs hidden, until a string of accidents and potions gone awry makes Vesper fear her patrons will abandon the business.
Maxwell Ashbridge, once a friend of her brother's, now serves the agency that enforces the ban and holds a personal vendetta against the magical elite.
He has no such grudge against Vesper, whom he finds enticing, and he offers immunity for the club if she investigates the trouble with him.
As the mishaps continue and the push to repeal the ban gains ground in Parliament, their growing enemies-to-lovers chemistry leaves them to decide whether what sparks between them is worth the fight.
