Divorced, unfaithful, lonely, dishonest: Maurice's family certainly don't lack in sarcastic comments when referring to him. Things change for Maurice the day he - by chance - discovers a letter written forty years earlier. It is addressed to his father and informs him of his father's sudden death in prison.

He keeps the letter secretly, in his room. The aura of mystery surrounding his grandfather, whose face he doesn't even know, intrigues him more than ever.

Who exactly was Hansel? A simple watchmaker? Was he as dishonest and as unpleasant as his family claimed? Determined to find out and make up his own mind, he sails for Ispah.

There, in this remote and little-known country in the midst of an election campaign, Maurice gets dragged into the fight against the established power and uncovers a well-kept government secret. With the help of his new friends, Thibault and the beautiful Elvyne, he discovers an unusual society where time plays a very special role.