In the clearing behind her home, six-year-old Clare Abshire encounters 36-year-old time traveler Henry DeTamble for the first time. Fourteen years later, an unexpected reunion a the library gives Henry the opportunity to meet Clare.

Brakebills University is a secret institution specializing in magic. There, amidst an unorthodox education of spellcasting, a group of twenty-something friends soon discover that a magical fantasy world they read about as children is all too real— and poses grave danger to humanity.