Arwen Forester may be a socially awkward introvert, but she’s an expert tracker, archer, and forager who has a pickling recipe for every vegetable in the garden. Unfortunately, none of these skills earn her a lot of money. And when the taxes go up on her father’s farm, she’s not sure how to help him keep the property. Then someone offers her a lucrative new gig: Hunt down a haughty half-dragon criminal with the power to incinerate those who irritate him.

When my magical order assigns me to Grimstone, Colorado, on a case, I’m in no hurry to pack my staff and spell books. The outlaw county is a far cry from my academic calling in New York City. And I’m being paired with junior wizard James Wesson. A brash hustler and wannabe cowboy, he’s exactly why I prefer working alone.

Welcome to the Midwest, America's Heartland, home to a hidden community of witches and wizards. When Maria Apple receives a strange music box for her 19th birthday, everything changes. She begins to showcase odd magical abilities, glowing blue, seeing ghosts, and talking to creatures that shouldn't be able to talk, all while trying to juggle the task of being a typical teenage girl. Now, not only does Maria learn she is a witch, but her grandfather, Ignatius, reveals he was once a famous warrior from a planet named Oriceran.

Skills include wielding dual magics, stabbing bad guys with the pointy end, and protecting the good people of Seattle from dark wizards. Also wraps a mean sashimi roll. The name Brownstone evokes a certain reaction no matter who hears it. And for Alison Brownstone that’s both a blessing and a curse. But it’s time for her to step out of her dad’s shadow and make a new name for herself. She just has to decide what she wants that name to mean.

The world has changed since the news of Oriceran came out 20 years before. Now, countries all over the world have agreed to using a bounty system for dangerous criminals using advanced magic or advanced technology. Magical criminals, thugs, and bounty hunters in the future, people too powerful for the cops to deal with, will revert to what worked in the past.