Abi and her two step-brothers, Max and Louis, find that strange things happen when they are alone in their eerie, ivy-covered new house. Abi, reading alone, finds herself tumbling deep into books, while Louis summons a startling guest through his bedroom window. Even Max has started to see shapes in the shadows... Their busy parents see none of it - but Louis' secret visitor is growing too alarming to keep secret, and he finds he cannot manage without...

When Mia visits the home of her friend Pie, she is amazed by everything she sees, feels, smells, and tastes, but Pie is sure that her home is just as special.

Just as Lewis the mouse is settling into his near-perfect home for the winter, still wondering what is missing, he hears noises and must roar to scare away whatever horrid creature is scratching and tapping at his tree.