Twelve-year-old Adam doesn't mind living at his uncle's bakery, the Biscuit Basket, on the Lower East Side in New York City. The warm, delicious smells of freshly baked breads and chocolate croissants make every day feel cozy, even if Adam doesn't have many friends and he misses his long dead parents very much.

When a mysterious but cheerful customer tells Adam that adventures await him, it's too strange to be true. But days later, an unbelievable, incredible thing happens. Adam travels back in time, first to Times Square in 1935, then a candle factory fire in 1967.

But how are these moments related? What do they have to do with his parents' death? And why is a tall man with long eyebrows and a thin mustache following Adam's every move?

In her debut novel G. Z. Schmidt has crafted a world filled with serendipity, mystery, and adventure for readers of Roald Dahl and Lemony Snicket.