Young Merlin dreams a bird, its breast as red as flames - and wakes to find his home engulfed in fire, his adoptive family dead, his life once again in ruin. He dreams a wizard and a castle on wheels. And soon, calling himself Hawk, he falls into the company of traveling performers. They rename him Hobby, after the small falcon, and exploit for their own profit his talent for dreaming the future.
But the boy's dreams never come true directly; they must be read on the slant. And no one - least of all the dreamer - can accurately foresee the nightmarish troubles that lie ahead.
As Hobby, the boy passes among peasants and princes; as Hawk, he is hunted and feared. And as Merlin, he is forever searching for the family that continues to elude him.