Orphan Lyra Belacqua's world is turned upside-down by her long-absent uncle's return from the north, while the glamorous Mrs Coulter visits Jordan College with a proposition.

From the clutches of the Gobblers, Lyra finds help from an unlikely place. It helps her put together more about her past and keep safe from Mrs Coulter and the Magisterium.

Lyra and the Gyptians arrive in the North and seek the help of the Witches’ Consul, Texan aeronaut Lee Scoresby and an armoured bear in service to the town.

The alethiometer sends Lyra and Iorek on a new path, leading to a shocking but vital clue in her search to find her friend Roger and the other missing children.