The second novel in the best-selling Inspector Lynley mystery series.
An isolated Scottish mansion is the venue for a reading of a controversial new play by a West End theatre company. But on the very first evening, the playwright is savagely murdered, and Inspector Thomas Lynley faces the most testing case of his career.
For one of the suspects is Lady Helen Clyde, the woman Lynley loves. And as he attempts to untangle the family scandals, fierce theatrical rivalries and long-buried secrets that beset the case, Lynley struggles to balance the clinical detachment of his job with the intensity of his feelings.
A treat - splendidly plotted and beautifully written - Colin Dexter
If Agatha Christie were writing today, this is how she'd do it. Good plot, credible characters and a very perceptive and observant female eye - Ted Allbeury
Elizabeth George is the internationally bestselling author of twenty psychological suspense novels, four young adult novels, two books of non-fiction and two short-story collections. Her work has been honoured with an Anthony Award, an Agatha Award, two Edgar nominations, and both France's and Germany's first prize for crime fiction. She has taught creative writing internationally and is the recipient of an honorary doctorate in humane letters and an honorary MFA in creative writing. She lives in Seattle, Washington.