On a rainy November evening, trainee doctor Sasha Johnson hurries through the crowd in London's historic Russell Square. Out of the darkness, someone jostles her as they brush past. A moment later, Sasha stumbles and then collapses. When Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and his sergeant, Doug Cullen, are called to the scene, they discover that she's been stabbed. Kincaid immediately calls in his detective wife, Gemma James, who recently has been assigned to a task force on knife crimes that are on the rise. As the team unravels the victim's tangled connections, another murder raises the stakes. Kincaid, Gemma and their colleagues must put even friendships on the line to find the killer stalking the dark streets of Bloomsbury.

Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and his wife, Detective Inspector Gemma James, have been invited for a relaxing weekend in the Cotswolds, one of Britain’s most enchanting regions. Duncan, Gemma and their children are guests at Beck House, the family estate of Melody Talbot, Gemma’s detective sergeant. The centerpiece of this glorious fall getaway is a posh charity harvest luncheon catered by up-and-coming chef Viv Holland. But a tragic car accident and a series of mysterious deaths rock the estate and pull Duncan and Gemma into the investigation. It soon becomes clear that the killer has a connection with Viv’s pub --- or, perhaps, with Beck House itself.

A young woman named Reagan Keating has been murdered in one of Notting Hill’s private gardens, and the lead detective, DI Kerry Boatman, turns to Gemma James for help. Gemma soon discovers that Reagan’s death is the second tragedy in this exclusive London park; a few months before, a young boy died in a tragic accident. But when still another of the garden residents meets a violent end, it becomes clear that there are more sinister forces at play. While his wife is consumed with her new case, Duncan Kincaid finds himself plagued by disturbing questions about several previous --- and seemingly unrelated --- cases involving members of the force. If his suspicions are correct and the crimes are linked, are his family and friends in mortal danger as well?

Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and his new murder investigation team are called to a deadly bombing at historic St. Pancras Station. By fortunate coincidence, Melody Talbot, Gemma's trusted colleague, witnesses the explosion. The victim was taking part in an organized protest, yet the other group members swear the young man only meant to set off a smoke bomb. As Kincaid begins to gather the facts, he finds that every piece of the puzzle yields an unexpected pattern, including the disappearance of a mysterious bystander.

A well-respected barrister is found dead at a seedy hotel. Is it an unsavory accident or murder? In either case, he was not alone. Detective Inspector Gemma James and her team must find his companion --- a search that takes them into unexpected corners and forces them to contemplate unsettling truths about the weaknesses and passions that lead to murder.

Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James, Scotland Yard partners as well as devoted life-mates, become embroiled in the case of the puzzling drowning of a rower, a Met detective, on the Thames.