When Death pays a visit to the aging duke of an extended family of wealthy socialites, it turns out he is not there on his usual business, but rather is seeking the old man’s guidance in his plan to enter the human world for a three-day holiday. The Duke agrees, and Death becomes a man of flesh. Assuming the identity of a prince from lands afar, he involves himself immediately in the affairs of the family. The Prince soon finds he is the object of intrigue, and discovers one whom he finds equally as enchanting. She is Grazia, an innocent lover of life with a burning curiosity about death.

Having tasted mortality, the prince becomes despondent over his imminent departure. As news reports begin to flood in describing an international epidemic of accident victims surviving as if by miracle, he conceives a plan to bring back to his world some of what he has experienced of humanity. The plan, he is convinced, must involve Grazia.