About The Book

In this thrilling young adult urban fantasy by acclaimed author L.L. McKinney, a Black boy with a bounty on his head uses his powers to protect mankind while searching for answers to his past.

Fifteen-year-old James “Jay” Mitchell has magic in his blood and one mission on his mind: protect his city from supernatural threats. He’s good at it, too—just not exactly authorized. See, hunting monsters without the Guild’s permission is a serious crime. And the Guild doesn’t do warnings. They do prison. Or execution.

When a damsel faking distress blows his cover, Jay suddenly finds himself hunted on two fronts: by the Guild and by the city’s paranormal population, some eager to settle old scores. Before long, there’s a price on his head.

Now, with vampire bounty hunters on his trail, Guild enforcers closing in, and fae knights joining the chase, Jay will need every weapon, spell, and trick in his technically illegal arsenal to survive. Because if he can’t clear his name, everything that goes bump in the night is coming to collect.

About The Author

Photograph © Courtney Cobb

L.L. (Leatrice) McKinney is the author of the Blade So Black trilogy, Escaping Mr. RochesterSplintered Magic, Spotify Original Audio Mourning GloryHeritage Blade, and several graphic novels for Marvel and DC. She was named in The Root’s Top 100 Most Influential African Americans and BET’s Top 100 Entertainers and Innovators and has been featured in Entertainment WeeklyThe New York Times, and many other publications. She is an advocate for equity and inclusion in the publishing industry, and she lives in Kansas City with her cats—Sir Chester Fluffmire and Lord Humphry, as they are known casually.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (March 23, 2027)
  • Length: 320 pages
  • ISBN13: 9798347102334
  • Ages: 12 - 99

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