When the Dovers find themselves in financial jeopardy, they have to sell the house Anne's parents left her. The only way to get rid of the house is to fix it up, but things don't go exactly as planned.

Emil is spending his summer vacation with his grandmother in Berlin. But on the train there, he is robbed by the ruthless con artist Max Grundeis and a wild adventure begins! Together with his friends Pony, Gustav, Dienstag, Anh, and Jason, Emil sets off in pursuit and embarks on a fast-paced detective hunt across Berlin.