Charlie Bone's life with his widowed mother and two grandmothers undergoes a dramatic change when he discovers that he can hear people in photographs talking.
Back at Bloor's Academy after Christmas vacation, Charlie finds himself confronted with a new problem when young Henry Yewbeam, who vanished during a game of marbles in 1916, suddenly appears and needs help to find his family.
Charlie and his friends unite to rescue Ollie, a boy who was turned invisible and made to live in the attics at Bloor's Academy more than a year ago, but they are hindered by a mysterious new student who lives with Charlie's aunts.
Charlie and his magically gifted friends and relatives work together to rescue Billy Raven, a young orphan, from a mysterious and dangerous couple who have adopted him.
Charlie faces his most dangerous adventure yet when the shadow from the Red King's portrait escapes. Strange things start to happen at Bloor's Academy. A mysterious force, however, is helping Charlie get closer to the truth about his father.
When Asa Pike, a Bloor's Academy student with the ability to change into a beast at dusk, goes missing, twelve-year-old Charlie Bone suspects a new classmate, the magically gifted Dagobert Endless, of foul play.