모자집의 맏딸 소피는 18살 때 황야 마녀의 저주를 받아 80세의 노파가 되버린다. 소피는 자신의 본모습을 찾기 위해 움직이는 성에 살고 있는 마법사 하울을 찾아간다. 그런데, 무시무시한 마법사로 알려진 하울은 사실 게으름뱅이에 요령만 피우는 철없는 바람둥이 연애대장이다.

소피는 수줍은 18살 처녀였다면 절대 못할 일들을 하울의 성에서 척척 해치운다. 성을 움직이는 불꽃 마귀 캘시퍼와 서로의 저주를 풀어주기로 계약을 맺은 소피는 성 이곳저곳을 들쑤시며 다니지만, 하울은 아리따운 여자 뒤를 졸졸 쫓아다니느라 신경을 쓰지 않는다.

별똥별이었다가 불꽃 마귀가 된 캘시퍼, 순진하지만 단호한 면도 있는 하울의 조수 마이클, 교활한 마녀에게 조종당하는 허수아비, 마녀의 저주를 받은 인어, 한 걸음에 17킬로미터를 가는 마법 장화 등 환상적인 이야기가 펼쳐진다. 2004년에 개봉한 미야자키 하야오 감독의 동명 애니메이션의 원작.

In this stunning sequel to Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones has again created a large-scale, fast-paced fantasy in which people and things are never quite what they seem.

There are good and bad djinns, a genie in a bottle, wizards, witches, cats and dogs (but are they cats and dogs?), and a mysterious floating castle filled with kidnapped princesses, as well as two puzzling prophecies. The story speeds along with tantalizing twists and turns until the prophecies are fulfilled, true identities are revealed, and all is resolved in a totally satisfying, breathtaking, surprise-filled ending.

Abdullah was a young and not very prosperous carpet dealer. His father, who had been disappointed in him, had left him only enough money to open a modest booth in the Bazaar. When he was not selling carpets, Abdullah spent his time daydreaming. In his dreams he was not the son of his father, but the long-lost son of a prince. There was also a princess who had been betrothed to him at birth. He was content with his life and his daydreams until, one day, a stranger sold him a magic carpet.

All fans of classic fantasy books deserve the pleasure of reading those by Diana Wynne Jones, whose acclaim included the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement. As Neil Gaiman stated, she was "quite simply the best writer for children of her generation."