Like most kids who grew up in the small town of Silver Falls, Toby Hoffman heard all the scary stories about monsters living in the neighboring woods of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. Now a teenager, he knows the tales are made up to keep the town’s children from wandering where they aren’t wanted.

Then his best friend, Nate, wakes up covered in blood in the reservation woods, with no recollection of whose blood it is or where it came from. Soon after, Silver Falls is beset by a series of brutal attacks. Toby begins to wonder if one of the fables he was told as a child might be true.

With the help of his Native American neighbor, Rachel Chochopi, he goes looking for answers. Before long, the two teenagers begin making startling discoveries about some of their friends, family members, and even some all-too-real monsters.