Sweden, 1863. A country not much visited by Englishmen. An exception is the inquisitive Mr. Wraxhall, whose innocent rummaging through the archives of the noble de la Gardie family takes a sinister turn.

Wraxhall becomes fascinated by the long-dead founder of the dynasty, the fearsome Count Magnus, a tyrannical ruler who dabbled in alchemy and who once made a strange journey to the Holy Land on most unholy business. Despite the warnings of his hosts, Wraxhall is drawn ever deeper into the Count's dark world and discovers that the dreaded aristocrat may not lie easy in his tomb...