Fate and adventure lie just beyond the door... William Sturnbottom is convinced fate is playing a cruel trick on him when his mother mysteriously disappears while searching for a rare artifact in Nepal. William is suddenly forced to leave his familiar London home for a chilly manor house in Scotland to live with his equally chilly grandfather. With not much to do, young William's imagination soon runs wild, and he becomes convinced that his grandfather is hiding family secrets from him, one of which might have something to do with his mother's disappearance. But when William enters his grandfather's forbidden study in search of answers, he unlocks more than secrets...he unlocks a whole new world. A world where Thirteen long sought after Keys can alter the balance of creation itself. But all is not as it appears to be and William soon discovers that his arrival in Corpurnia wasn't accidental, and to make matters worse, something very ancient and evil is now aware of his presence. With the help of some unlikely allies, William begins his perilous journey across the ravaged landscapes of Corpurnia; a world inhabited by Sand Pirates, dark elves, goblins, razorback trolls, vaporous stormhowlers, and worst of all, the Empire's ruthless ground wailers. All that keeps him going is the hope of discovering what really happened to his mother and perhaps, just perhaps, avert another devastating War of the Keys.