rmand Gamache and his wife are celebrating their wedding anniversary at an isolated, luxurious inn not far from the village of Three Pines. But they're not alone. The Finney family--rich, cultured, and respectable--has also arrived for a celebration of their own...

As the heat rises and the humidity closes in, some surprising guests turn up at the Finney reunion...and a terrible summer storm leaves behind a dead body. Now it's up to Chief Inspector Gamache to unearth long-buried secrets and hatreds hidden behind polite smiles. The chase takes him to Three Pines--into the dark corners of his own life, and finally to a harrowing climax.