George Gently

Gently investigates a death in police custody- and insists that Bacchus assist him, even though his sergeant has just submitted his formal resignation.

The body of a young woman washed up on the beach turns the attentions of Gently and Bacchus to the nearby holiday camp where she worked.

When a man is beaten to death in a Turkish bath, suspicion falls on an ex-soldier with a history of mental instability. But the mystery deepens when a psychologist who had been treating the suspect hangs himself after leaving money to the soldier in his will.

The death of a coal miner 800 feet underground presents logistical problems for Gently and Bacchus. More challenging still is figuring out which of the tensions and rivalries raging above the surface is a motive for murder.