Every generation, thirteen magicians receive a single, coveted invitation. Not to fame. Not to fortune. But to Scholomance—a hidden school buried somewhere in the old bones of Europe— where illusion is abandoned, and true magic is learned at the Devil’s feet. The price has always been clear: Thirteen enter. Twelve return. One soul is payment. For centuries, the pact held. Until one student found a way to cheat Hell. Enter Detective A.J. Stephens—a man with failing kidneys, nothing left to lose, and no patience for superstition—assigned to investigate what looks like a grisly pattern of murders. But A.J. soon discovers the deaths aren't the work of a serial killer. It’s a debt collector. As reality fractures and the supernatural bleeds in the streets of Atlantic City and Las Vegas, A.J. is forced to confront a horrifying truth: Magic is real. Hell has rules. And the Devil always gets what he’s owed.