Paul Maciver's locked-room suicide exactly mirrors his father's ten years earlier.

In each death accusing fingers point to the beautiful and enigmatic Kay Kafka, Pal's stepmother. But she has a formidable champion in Detective Superintendent Andrew Dalziel - which makes DCI Peter Pascoe's investigation doubly difficult. Not only must he disentangle the twisted relationships of the Maciver family, but he has to deal with an obstructive superior - and friend.

Even so, it becomes clear to Pascoe that the fall-out from Pal's death goes far beyond Yorkshire. And that for some people, the heart too is a locked room where it is always midnight...