Los Angeles – a city of glamour and grime, of glittering light and darkest night. And that’s just the human side. When the sun sets on the City of Angels, the real freaks come out to play – half-breed demons and newly-turned vampires, witches and warlocks and immigrant fae.
Charles “Chuck” Montiel didn’t believe in vampires until the night he was attacked and turned. Now he’s lost everything, and his only hope of salvation is an offer from Branch Zero, the outfit dedicated to keeping LA’s preternatural populace in check. The folks at Branch Zero try to keep murder and mishap to a minimum, but for a shadow organization that no-one wants to admit exists, budget cuts sure can be a pain in the ass, especially with a spate of serial murders burning up resources.
As an ex-homicide detective, Chuck can help them track down a dangerous cult threatening the city, known only as the Black Dawn – or, Chuck can decline and spend the rest of eternity pushing paper and snoozing through rent-a-cop jobs under Branch Zero’s surveillance. It’s not much of a choice. He wants the Black Dawn taken down, and besides, he’s got nothing to lose.
That is, until Misha Alhambra dances into his bleak existence.
A half-seraph with the face of an angel and hands full of flame, Misha runs the Wayward Heart Hotel, a sanctuary for all things preternatural or preyed upon by the same. When the homeless and the hunted need somewhere to hide, the Wayward Heart Hotel takes them in. Right now it’s dangerous to be one of L.A’s non-human denizens – for the cult of the Black Dawn are cooking up something unholy, and they’re killing preternaturals in order to do it.
Just like Chuck, Misha wants to end the Black Dawn’s gruesome work – but Branch Zero don’t exactly approve of her, her people, or her methods. She and Chuck are on opposite sides of the law, but when their worlds collide, sparks fly and passion ignites. Their connection is shocking and undeniable. Unfortunately, there’s a good chance neither will live long enough to understand it, because enemies both new and old are on the hunt in L.A.’s magical underworld, and Chuck and Misha are drawing attention to themselves.
Romance. Violence. Room service. Welcome to the Wayward Heart.