From a New York Times bestselling author, a murder, a missing man, and his newest constable´s secret past are all that´s standing in the way of Sergeant Hamish Macbeth´s relaxing winter. All Hamish Macbeth wants is a quiet life in his peaceful home in the Highland village of Lochdubh. But when his newly-assigned constable arrives, he presents Hamish with a surprise and a secret. Getting to the bottom of the secret becomes the least of Hamish´s problems when he meets a family who have a score to settle with a sinister man who has mysteriously gone missing. Discovering a murdered woman´s body puts further pressure on Hamish, especially when it becomes clear that the murdered woman and the missing man are linked. To Hamish´s horror, he then finds himself working on the murder case with the despicable Detective Chief Inspector Blair-his sworn enemy-who has been drafted in under curious circumstances. With a growing list of suspects, ever more bewildering circumstances and Blair hindering him at every turn, Hamish must find the murderer before anyone else falls victim. Never has a quiet life seemed further from his grasp!