Department of Dark Errands - (The Department of Dark Errands) by Imogen Vane (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

"She vanished to protect the world. Now she's back--to burn it down or save it."

A midlife spy with outlawed magic. An ex-lover back from the dead. And a conspiracy that could unravel the Department from within.

A forbidden magic. A dead partner who isn't. A spy who thought she was done.

Ten years ago, Nyra Vex faked her own death to escape the Department of Dark Errands--London's elite magical intelligence agency, where truth potions flow like gin and loyalty is sealed in blood. Once the Department's most lethal asset, Nyra walked away with a head full of secrets and a past she couldn't outrun.

Now, the Department wants her back.

Her ex-partner, long presumed dead, has reappeared--cursed, compromised, and carrying dangerous knowledge about a rogue magical entity known only as the Red Accord. With enemies closing in and old loyalties called into question, Nyra must navigate a web of shadowbeasts, memory extractions, and the one thing more dangerous than a double-crossed spy: a second chance at love.

But Nyra didn't survive this long by playing by the rules--and she has no intention of starting now.

Shadowmarked is the explosive first installment in The Department of Dark Errands, a spellbinding blend of espionage, slow-burn romance, and steampunk-fueled sorcery. Perfect for fans of The Atlas Six, Fourth Wing, and The Night Circus--with a twist of midlife rebellion.

About the Author

Imogen Vane is the debut author of The Department of Dark Errands, a midlife romantasy trilogy set in a world where espionage runs on forbidden magic and memory extraction is just another intelligence tool. Born and raised in the American Southwest, Vane draws from deep African American roots--generations of storytellers, healers, and seekers who understood that survival is its own form of alchemy.

A proud autodidact and lifelong introvert, Imogen writes from the quiet margins, where observation sharpens into insight and imagination becomes a refuge. Her world-building is layered, literary, and lush--with heroines forged not from prophecy, but from reinvention. While she rarely appears in the spotlight, her connection with readers runs deep: through handwritten notes, late-night Q&As, and slow-burning Substack posts that often read like dispatches from another realm.

The Dark Errands series marks a bold entry into the genre of romantasy, centering women over forty, long-hidden magic, and the cost of becoming visible after decades of erasure. It is at once a spy thriller, a reclamation, and a love story--for the self, for power, and for the strange, impossible beauty of starting over.

Imogen lives somewhere warm and wild, where the shadows stretch long and the stars are worth staying up for. She is currently working on the second installment in the trilogy--and trusting the dark to lead the way.