Henry Mafaye (10) lives alone with his father after Henrys mother left them when Henry was young. The two are doing okay as long as Henry doesn't talk about his mother. If he mentions her name, violent winds arise and crush everything around him to splinters. Henry's mother is a shattering geist. A shattering geist afflicts those who loved the person the most and can destroy an entire house. No one really knows why the geists appear, but they are related to things that cannot be spoken about. Henry's dad believes they should keep calm and carry on, but after a terrible accident at school, Henry understands it is time to figure out how to deal with shattering geists.