Return to 1930s Burning Cove, California, the glamorous seaside playground for Hollywood stars, mobsters, spies, and a host of others who find more than they bargain for in this mysterious town.Maggie Lodge, assistant to the reclusive advice columnist known only as Dear Aunt Cornelia to her readers, hires down-but-not-quite-out private eye Steen Colfax to help track the person who is impersonating her employer. Maggie and Steen are a mismatched pair. As far as Steen is concerned, Maggie is reckless and in over her head. She makes a lousy client, but he can't afford to be choosy. Maggie, on the other hand, is convinced that Steen is badly in need of guidance and good advice. She does not hesitate to give him both. In spite of the verbal fireworks between them, they are fiercely attracted to each other, but each is convinced it would be a mistake to let passion take over. They are, after all, keeping secrets from each other. Steen is haunted by his past, which includes a marriage shattered by betrayal and violence. Maggie is troubled by intense and vivid dreams-dreams that she can sometimes control, at least to some extent-and there are those who want to run experiments on her and use her for their own purposes.The mysterious death of a woman opens the door to a dangerous web of blackmail and murder, and it is clear that secrets from the past are being revealed and someone is bent on revenge. Maggie and Steen soon realize that they are dealing with someone much more dangerous than a pesky imposter. Waiting in the shadows is a killer who is rumored to have a deadly set of skills and will stop at nothing to exact vengeance-no matter who gets in the way.Story Locale: California