Chief Inspector Wexford has never known a case of a father finding the murdered body of his daughter. He has daughters of his own but can barely imagine himself in Mr Marshalson's position.

Tasked with picking through the pieces of a shattered family, Wexford unearths some surprising secrets about the dead teenager's lifestyle. And when a second girl is found murdered -- a victim unquestionably linked to the first -- Wexford has to put his own family problems aside to tackle what will become of the most disturbing and emotional case of his career.