Xanther Aerts spends his agoraphobic days in a self-confined space. He is only able to leave his apartment under the cover of darkness and orders everything he ever needs from the Internet. When he meets Beth Elretha by chance and saves her life, they are thrown together in a journey of epic and fantastical proportions. Beth's dreams haunt her every-day life and it soon becomes apparent she is not all that she seems – she is in fact from another world to which she holds the key. Escaping Dreams is based in a world called Orenia. The action centres on Middletown, a dying town overrun by gangs. As the town gradually decays the extremity of the situation brings to life the underground – a flourishing city where Beth first found her new home. Mallia festival is looming, awash with music, colours and new faces but already there are signs that things are not all as they seem. As her secret starts to escape her, Beth must defend all that she holds dear against the once-powerful race of the Chaka. Together, she and Xanther must travel far beyond the reaches of imagination before they can wake from the nightmare.