Professor Maggie Eliot is getting married, even though she has serious qualms. They're not about Thomas, the man she is marrying. She admits she is completely besotted. They're more about the getting married bit. However, Thomas' attitude is, "Let's get married. Then we'll sort out whatever still needs sorting." Of course, Thomas has had practice. He is a widower and also the 28th Baron Raynham, who lives at Beaumatin, his estate in the Cotswolds. Maggie will live there too, at least when she's not at Oxford. The wedding occurs, but within weeks, things begin to go terribly wrong. Thomas becomes attracted to a young magazine writer who bears a striking resemblance to his first wife. And the editor of the book Maggie has produced during a sabbatical year decides to sensationalise the work and use her married name to generate publicity and spur sales. Then a body is found buried in Beaumatin's famous gardens. When a second body is discovered, the police decide that Maggie had motive, means and opportunity for both murders and focus their investigation on her. Maggie knows she didn't kill anyone, even though she may have had to shoot a few people in the past, and suspects she is the victim of some elaborate plot. But what is its purpose? And who is behind it?