Singapore, 1910--Harriet Gordon has found fulfillment at last. Her young ward, Will, has settled into his new home with Harriet and her brother, Julian. And Harriet's employment as a typist at the Straits Settlements Police Force has given her an intriguing way to occupy her time and some much-needed financial independence. But when her friend and employer, Inspector Robert Curran, is called to the scene of a brutal murder and Harriet is asked to comfort the victim's family, her newfound sense of contentment is abruptly shattered.

Sylvie Nolan, the new and much-younger wife of Lieutenant Colonel John Nolan, has been bludgeoned to death in her bedroom. The tightly knit military community in Singapore quickly tries to close ranks to hinder Curran's investigation. Harriet has ties to the Nolan family and realizes that her friendship with the colonel's sister might prove useful to Curran's efforts to find the culprit.

But to get close enough to the family's secrets, Harriet must once again face her painful past and Curran is forced to dredge up some long-buried secrets of his own. And when more shocking deaths occur that all seem linked to Sylvie's murder, Harriet and Curran realize that they too are in the sights of a callous killer. . . .