The assorted leaders of the G8 countries have gathered in the capital and with daily marches, demonstrations and scuffles on the streets, the police are stretched to the limit. But one detective is still deemed surplus to requirements. DI John Rebus has been sidelined for fear of embarrassing his superiors at this most crucial time. However, all that changes when the night-time plunge of a young politician from the walls of Edinburgh Castle drags Rebus back onto centre stage. Suicide must be proved, and quickly, to avoid distraction from the main event.
But that case is swiftly superseded by another - more deadly - threat. A series of mysterious clues left in 5e woods near an ancient ‘clootie well’ outside Edinburgh start to point to a serial killer on the loose - a murderer who specialises in taking out newly-released rapists. The most alarming aspect for Rebus’s bosses, though, is that the well is a stone’s throw from Gleneagles itself.
The authorities are keen to hush up both issues, for fear of overshadowing a meeting of global importance. But Rebus has never been one to stick to the rules, and when his colleague Siobhan Clarke finds herself hunting down the identity of the riot cop who assaulted her mother, it looks as though Rebus and Clarke may be pitted on both sides of the conflict - and before the end of this monumental week, they each have to make decisions that will affect them forever..................
