Every year on Halloween night, villains from around the world gather to attend a secretive event known as a midnight auction. Here the wealthy, the diabolical and the curious get to bid on items from the darker side of history: antique spell-books, knives used by famous murderers, hands of glory. It's not the kind of place for those with a weak constitution and it's certainly not the kind of place for a twelve-year old boy, no matter how brave he might think he is ... Tony Lott lives with his uncle in a dusty antiques shop in London, England. Joseph Martell--said uncle--is an old man harboring a terrible secret. When the pair are lured to the grandest midnight auction of all they find themselves caught up in a frightening conspiracy. At the center of the puzzle lies Marshwood, the House of Many Doors. But what does its owner want with Tony? And why is a teenage witch with a short temper the key to unraveling the whole mystery?