The Buried Giant begins as an elderly couple, Axl and Beatrice, set off across a troubled land of mist and rain in the hope of finding a son they have not seen in years. The story unfolds in post-Arthurian Britain, where the wars that once raged between the Saxons and the Britons have finally ceased. However, a strange mist has caused mass amnesia throughout the land.

As they embark on their journey, they expect to face many hazards—some strange and other-worldly—but they cannot yet foresee how their journey will reveal to them dark and forgotten corners of their love for one another. They are joined by a Saxon warrior, his orphan charge, and an illustrious knight, each with their own forgotten past.

By turns savage, suspenseful, and intensely moving, The Buried Giant is a luminous meditation on the act of forgetting and the power of memory. It explores themes of lost memories, love, revenge, and war.