THE HAWK AND THE SPARROW

Vesper, an intrepid young reporter agrees to help the city's most notorious (and decidedly attractive) sorcerer clear his name of murder; if she succeeds, she'll collect a check big enough to save her beloved newspaper from ruin but she'll have to pose as his fiancé to infiltrate high society and dig through its many secrets .... and they'll both have to survive each other, and the murderer still stalking the city's streets.

In the industrious city of Basalton, magic is might. Highborn families who can afford a private education in the Archaic Arts use enchantments to flaunt power and status. The lower classes who can't dabble in cheap counterfeit enchantments that, misused, can prove deadly. No one appreciates the dangers of enchantments more than seventeen-year-old orphan Vesper Evans. A terrible childhood accident has taught her two things: never trust magic, and never trust the sorcerers who wield it. Instead, she commits herself wholly to her job as a writer for the Basalton Herald, and the family she has found there. But when her newspaper finds itself under threat of permanent closure, Vesper will do anything to save it. Maximilian Kite is not only the heir to one of Basalton's wealthiest families, he's also a sorcerer, and one with a bold proposal for Vesper: If she can use her investigative skill to help him solve a murder and prove his innocence, he'll pay a sizable reward, one that could save the Herald. Max is everything Vesper despisesdecadent, self-indulgent, and privileged beyond reasonbut his offer is too good to pass up. And to infiltrate the upper class, with as many rules as it has secrets, Vesper will have to do the unimaginable: pose as Max's fiancée. Allied by a romantic ruse, Vesper and Max gather clues and suspects, all while pretending to be hopelessly in love. But there's a killer stalking Basalton's streets, and the machinations of something sinister at play. Together, Vesper and Max will have to uncover the murderer's true identity - before they become the next victims. AYANA GRAY is a New York Times bestselling author. Her works have been translated in eleven languages across five continents; received critical recognition at the state and national level; and have been featured on Good Morning America, Tamron Hall, People Magazine, and Oprah Daily among others. In her spare time, Ayana guest lectures at writing workshops across the country. She currently lives and writes in Arkansas.