Oxford's Inspector Robert Lewis, protégé of the legendary Inspector Morse, works with his brilliant, but brooding partner, Detective Sergeant James Hathaway. The two try to find a link between a murder in Oxford's Bodleian Library; a burglary gone wrong leads from underground amateur boxing to the now-defunct East German Secret Police; the suicide of Hathaway's old friend test his relationship with Lewis; a case of rape and murder causes Lewis...

Will Burton is a junior barrister of peerless intellect and winning charm, who specializes in spiriting people out of tight legal corners. Much to the aggravation of his courtroom rival, Maggie Gardner, Will has never lost a case. His talents acquit serial killer Liam Foyle of murder, and it is only a matter of time until Foyle kills again.