It is the Day of Death, and a fiesta is in full swing. In the shadow of Popocatepetl ragged children beg coins to buy skulls made of chocolate... and the ugly pariah dogs roam the streets. Geoffrey Firmin, H.M. ex-consul, is drowning himself in liquor and mescal, while his ex-wife and half-brother look on, powerless to help him. As the day wears on, it becomes apparent that Geoffrey must die. It is his only escape from a world he cannot understand.