The first book in a major fantasy series, featuring cunning, deception, quirky characters, clever charms and lots of humour. Septimus Heap is stolen at birth and the very same night his father, Silas Heap, rescues a baby girl from a snowy path in the woods. The Heaps decide to bring her up as their own. But who is she, and what has become of little Septimus? Ten years later there is a knock at the door, and the truth begins to unfold. The evil necromancer DomDaniel is plotting his comeback and a Major Obstacle resides in the Heap family. Life as they know it is about to change.