Restaurant owner Pearl Nolan discovers the body of her friend and oyster supplier chained to the anchor of his ship. The police, led by out-of-towner Chief Inspector Mike McGuire, believe it was an accident, but Pearl, who also runs a private detective agency, suspects foul play.

Working with local cop DS Nikki Martel, Mike investigates the death of a diabetic estate agent force-fed marmalade. When a woman hires Pearl to look into a large sum of cash left in her mailbox, Pearl discovers Whitstable may have a mysterious benefactor-but are they connected to the murder?

When a recently retired DCI is shot dead during an English Civil War reenactment, Mike immediately suspects the victim’s wife, but she hires Pearl to find out if someone could be targeting her, too. Pearl and Mike plan a date, but a miscommunication puts them at odds.

Pearl agrees to help a woman who received a note claiming her missing husband did not die from suicide. Pearl connects the case to a grief-counseling church group and a drowning years ago. As Christmas approaches, Mike sinks into a depression, despite taking on a new flat in Whitstable.

When a mother takes her daughter out for a boat ride despite the father’s wishes, the boat starts taking on water and the two need to be rescued. Was it an accident, or were they targeted? Pearl investigates while Mike tries to enjoy his time off from police duty in the days before New Year’s Eve.

A 30-year-old skeleton washes up on the shore, and the victim has a very personal connection to Pearl; Pearl's budding romance with Mike is threatened when he identifies a suspect close to home.

While returning from visiting his young son, Kruz, in France, Whitstable local and former soldier Dan Tomlin crashes his car. When he wakes in the hospital, Dan learns that Kruz had been hiding in the trunk of his vehicle—and he"s now gone missing. With his ex-wife accusing him of kidnapping their son, Dan hires Pearl to track him down, and she teams up with Mike to find the missing boy.

Laid up at home with a broken ankle, Mike passes time by observing his neighbors in the complex across the way. After witnessing one man"s violent night terrors, Mike becomes convinced that his supposed episodes are part of a plot to murder his wife. When Mike"s police colleagues dismiss his concerns, he hires Pearl to do the legwork he can"t.

After inheriting a beloved local pub from her mother, Molly Stratton puts it up for sale to the highest bidder, rather than selling it back to the community. She turns to Pearl for help to deal with the anonymous threats she's been receiving--including a dead seagull on her doorstep. When the pub is sold, the situation takes an even darker turn.

When 1970s movie icon Zelda St John changes her will, leaving her fortune to her housekeeper, Natalia, the young woman seeks out Pearl, fearing that Zelda's family might hurt her. Not long afterward, Zelda is found unconscious at her home, attacked with a croquet mallet, and Natalia disappears. Clashing over who they believe is responsible, Mike and Pearl lead separate investigations.

Mysterious happenings at Dolly's (shower left running, smoke alarms going off, money missing) has Pearl worried about her mother's state of mind. Meanwhile a burglary has Mike determined not to involve Pearl at any cost.

Pearl is missing Charlie. Mike is missing Pearl, but a death at a wedding brings them together as Pearl is a witness to family rivalry, angry ex-girlfriends and lies.