Olivia Brophie feels betrayed. She hasn’t heard from her mom who’s serving in the army in Iraq. And for no reason, her dad sent her to live with her crazy aunt and uncle in the middle of nowhere—the Florida scrub. It seems boring till bears follow her to school, coral snakes leave her gifts, and tree frogs start writing cryptic messages on her bedroom window.

Olivia is fascinated by the giant insect walkingsticks that her uncle tenderly protects. He turns out to be crazier than she thought with wild ideas about magnetic currents, cosmic rays, and a mysterious device that controls the laws of the universe. He doesn’t know the half of it.

Along with Doug, a local eco-nerd genius, and Gnat, her videogame-obsessed little brother, Olivia discovers a vast underworld city that holds the secrets of history as well as the way to the future. With the forces of evil at her heels, she finds a brilliant pearl and must use its power to discover her life's ultimate destiny.