Just when she thinks her day can’t get any weirder, she finds a baby dragon … Deandra Hendricks works her fingers to the bone at two jobs to keep her Los Angeles apartment. With a rapidly dwindling savings account, the prospects for her future are bleak. So when her cousin invites her to visit Axia—the hidden magical hub their grandparents retired to—she agrees. Deandra doesn’t possess a stitch of magic herself, but a long weekend vacation in a strange new town might be just what she needs. Her first day in Axia is so bizarre, though, she wonders if her bleak life in Los Angeles hasn’t been so bad after all. And just when she thinks her day can’t get any stranger, she finds a baby dragon trapped in a dumpster. At a loss, she takes a trip to the vet, hoping they can help find the little guy’s owner. The dragon, it turns out, only appears in its true form to her, while everyone else sees a dire wolf puppy. She and the vet discover that, as long as the dragon wears his bespelled collar, his true identity is hidden. Someone went to great lengths to keep this supposed-to-be-extinct animal a secret. Then the “dog” is accused of arson and is seized by authorities. Determined to help him, Deandra searches for the real arsonist. She catches wind of a thriving black market that’s populated by those who would stop at nothing to claim an animal this rare. She must work quickly to clear her dragon’s name, because if he falls into the wrong hands, she could lose him forever.

Job hunting is a deadly sport. Deandra “Dee” Hendricks is settling into her new life in Axia. She’s got her trusty baby dragon, Havoc, by her side, is sharing an apartment with her best friend and roommate, Wendy, and even has her first pet-sitting client. Things are looking up! Shortly after launching her new website, Dee receives an invitation to a pet-sitter happy hour where she meets Sarah, the owner of Axia’s largest pet-sitting operation. Other attendees include sole proprietors, like Dee, and a few of Sarah’s employees. Everyone is welcoming and willing to share advice—mainly to steer clear of their notorious fellow sitter, Lydia Monroe. They accuse Lydia of everything—from magically manipulating her animal charges and poaching clients from Sarah to making false claims about possessing “zoolingual” abilities. The sticking point is Lydia’s questionable acquisition of a lucrative gig offered by Oleander Basnet, a yeti whose son needs one-on-one care. Sarah’s company fought hard for the opportunity, only to have yet another job snatched away by Lydia. The peaceful get-together is interrupted when a late arrival informs the group that Lydia had been found murdered. Worse still, the time of death doesn’t exonerate anyone at the event. Dee fears she just shared discounted apps with a murderer. Later that night, a job offer from Oleander hits Dee’s inbox. Dee’s wallet desperately wants her to take the job, but could there be someone in town so desperate to beat the competition that they murdered Lydia? And could Dee be next?

When feathers appear, danger is near. Deandra’s grandparents, January and Morris Eyre, are hosting a fundraising auction at the Mermaids Club. While they’re no strangers to auctions, they’ve never hosted one with a guest list this moneyed or with items this rare. The revenue from the event is sure to pull in a nice chunk of change for the much-needed renovations of the local library—but the lure of the self-igniting phoenix feather is also pulling in unscrupulous individuals. A multimillionaire in the talisman industry—and the owner of a company with a shady past—has his sights set on the feather. When his invitation to the high-profile event is rescinded, Duncan Bettencourt works to discredit the Eyres by blasting flagrant half-truths across his popular social media page. His cornerstone claim is that the small philanthropic club doesn’t have the resources necessary to pull off such an event. When the phoenix feather goes missing, Bettencourt jumps at the chance to scream “I told you so!” from virtual rooftops. With renewed purpose, Bettencourt uses his online clout, gobs of money, and pure spite to relentlessly torment the Eyres. Deandra and Wendy must once again don their sleuthing caps, this time to help their grandparents track down a thief. Because the missing feather isn’t only rare, it’s potentially dangerous. Under the right conditions, the self-igniting feather could be crafted into a bomb. The cousins must locate the feather before it falls into the wrong hands—not just for their grandparents’ sake, but for Axia’s.

Join Deandra, Havoc, and Peril on their next adventure!