Two brothers are murdered at the same time hundreds of miles apart. Meanwhile ancient monastic objects of great value have gone missing from a bank. Are the crimes related? A clever detective appears on the scene to investigate. But many amateurs are also involved in solving the mysteries -- nervous old Mr. Raven, proprietor of Ravensdene Court; his nineteen-year-old niece; a cranky octogenarian numismatist; the local doctor; his ingenious Chinese servant; and Middlebrook, expert on ancient books and documents. This is detecting as a team sport!
There are dramatic scenes on land and sea that rival any modern thriller. At the same time there are Gothic touches -- an isolated manor house, decaying graveyards, a ruined church, ancient manuscripts.
