Nasty things have been happening in the village of Medmelton the vicious, unsolved murder of a poet, and now the events connected with the legendary Lazarus tree in the churchyard Playwright Gus Maltravers, is asked to help by a friend worried about his stepdaughter, though how he can help is uncertain as the villagers dislike outsiders, and jealousy and frustration are rife What were the killer's motives, and where does the Lazarus tree fit in? Maltravers must tear away years of deceit to get at the truth, but its exposure will have terrible consequences