1881, Scotland. The melancholy existence of Roderick Burns becomes hopeful as his infatuation with a girl inspires a globe-spanning quest for his missing father. Along with maverick archeologist David Hathaway, the haunted Sissyfuss, and the lonesome Col. Julius T. Corbin, Roderick is pursued by his half-sister Trsae, who is under the spell of the sorcerer Otto. Roderick must survive a vessel of damned souls, brave the ancient tunnels of a subterranean world, endure the Patagonian horrors, and face his own grim legacy in icy Antarctic wastelands. For mature readers!