Tetherton is in the grip of a minor crime wave, DS Declan O'Hara has a new boss to contend with ... and, out at local beauty spot Dedham Heights, a bearded woman has been found brutally murdered.For a sulky chauvinist like O'Hara, the fact that Chief Inspector Wentmore is a woman herself is bad enough. But she has secrets, too, and a past that seems inextricably linked with the murders that soon threaten to tear his world apart.As the body count rises, O'Hara begins to fear that the monster they are hunting for may be closer to home than anyone dares imagine...