To Trap a Taniwha and He Raru ki Tai is an adventure story set in seventeenth-century Tamaki Makaurau Auckland when the hapu of Nga Oho/Nga Iwi predominated. Armed with the courage of their convictions, two girls embark on a perilous journey to challenge their leaders’ actions. Cousins, Te Kawenga and Kakati learn of a plan being hatched against a neighbouring iwi and strange activity occurring at a seasonal fishing camp.