Deborah and Simon St. James go to Lancashire to get away and hope to distract themselves from all the problems threatening to destroy their marriage. But there they receive a terrible news: the vicar Winslow—whom they came to visit—has died suddenly from poisoning. Dissatisfied with how the investigation is being handled, Simon calls in help from his old friend, Inspector Thomas Lynley. Together they unravel a tangled web of relationships driven by passions that throw some into each other’s arms and others into the abyss.