The 18th century - a different world...

But theft, blackmail and murder never change...

In Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the 1730s, life is not easy for an impoverished musician.

For Charles Patterson, violinist, harpsichord player, composer and would-be church organist, it's about to get a whole lot harder.

First he is accused of stealing a valuable book. Then a cherished violin belonging to his flamboyant professional rival Henri le Sac disappears, rapidly followed by le Sac himself. And when the young apprentice he inherited from his rival is gruesomely murdered, Patterson starts to feel out of his depth.

Strange goings-on at the elegant home of capricious Lady Anne leave him in fear for his health and sanity, and the lady's cousin, Esther Jerdoun, seems to be trying to warn him about something.

The mystery deepens as the death toll mounts, and it becomes clear that things are not quite as they appear...