A famous novelist is found murdered in an alley the morning after a prestigious book launch, and DCI Burke's team's only lead is a drugged and confused prostitute. As the team explore a number of possibilities, Fraser and Reid find the victim enjoyed a secret life amid Glasgow's sleazy underworld which may have led to murder.

DCI Burke's personal life comes to the fore as the team are called to the countryside of Fenmore after a farmer is killed in a suspicious fire. With few clues and no villager prepared to offer information, Burke feels they have stepped into a private war.

When lawyer Richard Flett is shot dead, suspicion initially falls on his widow Adele and his partner Charlie Muir, who were having an affair. However, when Muir is also murdered, Burke uncovers a wholly different motive. A group of residents was taking a company called Arcadia to court on the grounds that they had caused pollution, leading to illness.