Steeped in Hispanic folklore since childhood, middle schooler Charlie Hernández learns the stories are true when, shortly after his parents disappearance, he grows horns and feathers and finds himself at the heart of a battle to save the world.

Traveling back in time to 1950s Cuba to stop a mysterious incident that will eventually destroy the Land of the Living, Charlie, Violet and Raúl are pursued by an unspeakable evil as they scour the mountain rainforests of Havana for clues to untangle the past, present and future.