"Everything has a cost. And every act of magic exacts a price from its user.... But some people want to use magic without paying, and they Offload the cost onto innocents. When that happens, it falls to a Hound to identify the spell's caster--and Allison Beckstrom's the best there is"--P.4 of cover.

"Magic is Allison Beckstrom's blessing and curse. As a Hound, she uses her gifts to track down practitioners who abuse their power, and then stops them from inflicting harm on unsuspecting innocents. Unfortunately her spells have taken a toll on her, physically marking her and erasing her memories--including those of the man she supposedly loves. But lost memories aren't the only things preying on Allie's thoughts. Her late father, the prominent businessman--and...

Allie Beckstrom's lover, Zayvion Jones, is a Guardian of the Gate, imbued with both light and dark magic and responsible for ensuring that those energies don't mix. But Zayvion lies in a coma, his soul trapped in death's realm. And when Allie discovers that the only way to save Zayvion is to sacrifice her very own magical essence, she makes a decision that may have grave consequences for the entire world.

"Allison Beckstrom has willingly paid the price of pain to use magic and has obeyed the rules of the Authority, the clandestine organization that makes-and enforces all magic policy. But when the Authority's new boss, Bartholomew Wray, refuses to believe that the sudden rash of deaths in Portland could be caused by magic, Allie must choose whether to follow the Authority's rules or to turn against the very people for whom she's risked her life. To...

"For most of her life, Allison Beckstrom has used magic and accepted the heavy price it exacts. But now that all magic is poisoned, it's no longer just using people--it's killing them. With Portland about to descend into chaos, Allie needs to find a way to purify the wells of tainted magic beneath the city. But the only options left to her are grim: attempt to close down magic forever, or follow her father's plan to set magic into the right hands--even...