Belle is a lot of things: smart, resourceful, restless. She longs to escape her poor provincial town for good. She wants to explore the world, despite her father's reluctance to leave their little cottage in case Belle's mother returns -- a mother she barely remembers. Belle also happens to be the captive of a terrifying, angry beast. And that is her primary concern. But when Belle touches the Beast's enchanted rose, intriguing images flood her mind...

Twelve-year-old Theo uses arcane knowledge and her own special talent when she encounters two secret societies, one sworn to protect the world from ancient Egyptian magic and one planning to harness it to bring chaos to the world, both of which want a valuable artifact stolen from the London museum for which her parents work.