While attempting to escape her miserable life in the human world, Lorelle Gragan stumbles across Hawthorn Lane, a dark and sensuous sanctuary for the supernatural. Although it's modern day, the villagers live as though in another time, with long dresses and twirling cloaks, crackling fires and fancy carriages. In exchange for a new life in this unusual place, Lorelle is trained as a gatherer of secrets for a powerful witch. But there's one secret Lorelle must keep to herself-there's not one drop of fey in her body. When the aristocratic Van der Daarke family unexpectedly returns to Hawthorn Lane after fleeing the village a century ago, Lorelle is determined to find out why they've come back, and why now. Luck is on her side when a young Van der Daarke, frightened and bewildered by this strange world, runs away and ends up at Lorelle's door, ripe for the exploiting. But Lorelle doesn't count on having to deal with the formidable Kyran Van der Daarke, the runaway's uncle and a man with his own secrets. Feeling both attracted to the high-born and repelled by his blue-blooded arrogance, she's caught between wanting to learn what happened to his family and avoiding the proud man at all costs. It's only when danger threatens the village that Lorelle at last solves the mystery...but the answer comes with a price as she discovers a truth about her own family's past that could end the life she's made for herself in the bewitching world of Hawthorn Lane.