Henrietta Bloom knows seventh grade is a special kind of torture-braces, a despotic teacher, her first crush. Finding a curse inside a fortune cookie doesn't exactly boost her confidence. Her parents, two respected archaeologists, assure her that it's a joke directed at them. After all, the curse refers to King Alaric's lost tomb, which they are preparing to excavate. After her parents leave for Italy, Henri's luck plummets. The queen bee hears about Henri's curse and misfortune cookies are suddenly popular at school-fatal farts, bad breath, stink eye. More importantly, Henri is sure antiquity thieves are stalking her, her parents are missing, and her babysitter has gone off the deep end. Desperate to find her parents, Henri dives into the history of Alaric's curse, seeking out a cranky archaeologist who warns her to stop. Henri guesses she might be digging her own grave, but she can't quit. Her fortune is at stake.