Accidental alchemist

Unpacking in her new hometown of Portland, Oregon, herbalist and reformed alchemist Zoe Faust can't help but notice she's picked up a stowaway Dorian Robert-Houdin is a living, breathing three-and-half-foot gargoyle -- not to mention a master of French cuisine -- and he needs Zoe's expertise to decipher a centuries-old text. Zoe isn't so sure she wants to reopen her alchemical past . . . until the dead man on her porch leaves her no choice.

"Dorian Robert-Houdin, the three-and-a-half-foot gargoyle chef who fancies himself a modern-day Poirot, is slowly turning into stone, and it's up to Zoe Faust to unravel the alchemical secrets that can save him. When they discover that a long-lost stone gargoyle with a connection to Dorian has reappeared in Europe, the stakes are even higher. From Portland to Paris, Zoe searches for the hidden knowledge she needs, but a cold case that harkens back...