Several weeks have passed since Richard Jury was left bereft and guilt-ridden after the tragic accident of Lu Aguilar. Now she lies in a coma, and Jury wants to stay near her. Instead, he has been tossed a case outside his jurisdiction, in the village of Chesham, where a beautiful young woman has been murdered in the grounds of a pub called the Black Cat. And the only witness to the murder is the black cat.
Given her gown—Yves St. Laurent—and her shoes—Jimmy Choo—Jury wonders, Was she rich or wed to riches?  She carries no identification, and no one in the village has a clue to who she is.
Then in London, another murder, another beautifully got-up woman. And then a third.  Jury is stumped: he knows these killings are connected, but if this is a serial killer in London, why commit a murder in Chesham?
Meanwhile, Jury’s nemesis, the brilliant (and crazy?) Harry Johnson continues to delight in goading Jury, leading him into a maze of possibilities or impossibilities. And Johnson, along with his preternaturally astute dog, Mungo, just may be the key to it all.