A by-pass is planned in Kingsmarkham that will destroy its peace and natural habitat for ever. Dora Wexford joins the protest, but the Chief Inspector must be more circumspect: trouble is expected. As the protesters begin to make their presence felt,a young woman`s badly decomposed body is unearthed. Burden believes he knows the murderer`s identity but Wexford is not convinced. Furthermore, having just become a grandfather, he is struggling to put aside his familial responsibilities and emotions inorder to do his job. The case progresses, the protest escalates. And alarmingly, a number of people begin to disappear, including Dora Wexford... `One of the greatest novelists presently at work in our language... a writer whose work should be readby anyone who either enjoys a brilliant mystery - or distinguished literature` Scott Turow.