Nigel Strangeways had always admired Robert Seaton as the greatest poet of his age. It was shocking to think that he might be a murderer....

Scandal erupts when a headless corpse is found floating in the Thames close to the house of England's most famous poet. Whose body is it? And where is the head?

On the surface the Seatons seem a civilised and charming family, yet Nigel detects undercurrents of anxiety and strain. He is perplexed by the bizarre family servant Finny, a mute dwarf, and by the Seatons' relationship with their tenants, artist Rennell Torrance and his tempestuous daughter Mara. One by one, under his shrewd probing, the suspects yield up their secrets until Nigel can see to the heart of this tragic case of thwarted talent, ruthless greed and exceptionally bloody murder.