What could be more fun than a Christmas party? Sally Ewing, having suffered some years of depression, is persuaded to reinstate the family's annual Christmas party. Things are gong well when the arrival of Santa is announced and the guests take it in turn to visit him in the study. As supper is announced, one missing guest is discovered dead, in the study. DCI Charles Davenport and his DS Fiona Macdonald are two of the guests and their social evening ends up as the start of a murder investigation.