It's shaping up to be the most dangerous of all Christmas Eves, and fifteen year old Ree Stahlbaum is in the midst of it. Apprentice to a mysterious inventor named Drosselmeier, Ree is swept up in his dark dealings as the clock strikes midnight. As she leaves her comfortable, safe hearth and home to uncover the secrets behind living toys and enchanted creatures, Ree finds friendship and enemies in unexpected places. Putting aside her knitting and embroidery, and the constant nagging of her sister are all tasks she can relish easily enough, but the choices and demands only get harder from there.

Is Ree up to the task of righting Drosselmeier's wrongs, with only a nutcracker man, a clockwork doll, an irritating older brother, a handful of urchins, and her wits to help her? With an army of mechanical rats close on her heels and an air ship of sky pirates above her, time is running out, and Ree can't be sure who to trust.

Drosselmeier's dark world is unlike anything Ree has ever known. A lifetime of needlepoint, piano forte, and etiquette lessons had hardly prepared her for this.