Many years ago, Thornton Place had been a magnificent sight. Now the isolated mansion is almost derelict; a bewitching, foreboding place. Yet it is Ellie Armstrong's home, the house her father had been hired to renovate. And – still grieving over the recent death of her mother – Ellie has learned to love it.

As winter draws in, the shadows cast by Thornton Place's sinister past lengthen. But Ellie is oblivious. She has found love. A love that is hypnotically powerful – and fatally compelling.