The novel opens with the unnamed narrator meeting an old friend, Charlene, for dinner. The restaurant is near the airport, as Charlene has a layover and will be continuing soon on her trip. She told him over the phone of an ancient manuscript she heard about while in Peru on a business trip. When he arrives at the restaurant, he learns that Charlene’s briefcase was stolen, and a police report is filed.

Charlene tells the narrator what he knows about the Manuscript. It was written around 600 BC and prophesies that human society will become transformed at the end of the second millennium. One of the first signs that this transformation is coming will be a general restlessness; more and more people, dissatisfied with their lives, will pursue spiritual truth. They will also become more deeply aware of problems in their relationships. The Manuscript states that a growing number of people will become aware of these feelings, and a critical mass will be reached. Nine insights in the Manuscript lay out the process through which this transformation will occur, but the Ninth Insight has yet to be found. The danger is that the Peruvian government will suppress the Manuscript at the behest of the Church.