In six months six people in the little market town of Tillington had lost their lives by suicide, misadventure or murder. Was there a mass-killer at large or did Tillington harbour six different and unsuspected murderers? The Chief Constable decided to call in a dispassionate opinion from someone at Scotland Yard who knew neither the place nor the people.

It was the newly promoted Inspector Flyte's first solo investigation and he was more than glad to seek guidance from Commander William Austen, also recently promoted and now in hospital with serious injuries received on a case.

In trying to follow Austen's advice Flyte digs up some curious facts about those most closely concerned with the six sudden deaths and uncovers several fires smouldering beneath the surface of a supposedly sleepy town.