Imagine a world very similar to our own, but fantastic creatures live alongside humans, such as witches and armored bears... And the human soul can take the form of an animal – a daemon.
Twelve-year-old orphan Lyra Belacqua lives in Oxford with her daemon Pantalaimon. Her uncle, the powerful Lord Asriel, comes to college to organize an expedition to the North. The purpose of his trip is to discover the origin of the mysterious 'dust' that can be seen in photographs taken in these places.
Soon after her uncle's departure, mysterious 'priests' kidnap Lyra's friend, a servant boy. There are eerie legends about them taking children to the distant North.
The girl sets out to find her friend, and on this journey, secrets are revealed to her about her own family and the fate that awaits her in the frozen lands...