On the outskirts of Wall, a small town in rural England, the Faerie Market is held every nine years on the other side of the wall dividing Faerie — a mystical realm of magic — from our world and for which the town of Wall is named. As the book begins, the market has just begun and the town is filled with visitors and vendors. A young man named Dunstan Thorn rents out his cottage to a stranger in exchange for his "Heart's Desire," in addition to a monetary payment. The next day in the market, he meets Una, a beautiful woman imprisoned by the witch called Semele. He purchases a glass snowdrop from Una with a kiss, and gives the flower to his fiancée Daisy. Enthralled by her beauty during the encounter, Dunstan later meets Una in the woods that night and makes love to her. A month later, Dunstan marries Daisy as planned. In February (a little over nine months later), he receives a baby in a basket — his and Una's son, Tristran.