Emily Luccock is looking forward to living at Sugar Hill Hall...She remembers her aunt and uncle's grand old mansion well. But this time things are different. Her aunt's once bright and lively home is now dead with silence. Evil lurks in every corner and the dark, shadowed walls watch and whisper late at night. Emily is desperate to uncover the truth about what is happening at Sugar Hill Hall. But time is running out, and she must find a way to save the people and home she cares so much about.

Shipped off to Mrs. Spilking's Select Academy for Young Ladies, Emily goes up against Mrs. Spilking, who tempts children into misbehaving with delicious peppermints, and a nasty gang of villains who are after her inheritance.