In 79 CE, the volcano Mount Vesuvius, in Italy, erupted violently and unexpectedly. The nearby towns of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabiae were destroyed: buried under ashes or lava. Flavia is a young girl living in Pompeii in 79 CE. Maria is a young girl who joins her archaeologist uncle on a tour through the streets of Pompeii in 1863. When Maria asks what happened to the people of Pompeii, her story is forever linked with Flavia’s story.