Everyone has a few ghosts in their closets, but John Coffin, Chief Commander of the Second City of London's Police believes that his are all safely tucked away. In fact, recently recovered from a gunshot wound, Coffin is hoping for a calmer life with his actress wife Stella Pinero.
However, life has other plans for him. Coffin learns that all of his ghosts are not behind him when a parcel containing dismembered limbs is found outside a woman's refuge. The Serena Seddon Shelter for battered wives is located on Barrow Street, not far from Coffin's own home. But the link to Coffin is more sinister than mere proximity: his initials are written on the package and the shelter is housed in the building where he lived when he first arrived in the Second City. This discovery opens a door through which troop a succession of horrible and violent events including sudden death.
Coffin's Ghost is another sterling entry in a series that has been continually praised for its ability to delve into the darker side of life and will leave readers wondering just how safe their secrets are.