A literary mystery about an old-money East Coast family facing the suspicious death of its patriarch, andthe unsolved theft of a Goya painting rumoured to be cursed.The fascinating creation of Goya's "black paintings" has not been covered widely. Readers are consistently interested in the unusual stories of forgery, theft, tortured geniuses, and wealthy owners that go with the world of fine art.

There were four cousins in the Morse family: perfect Kenny, the preppy West Coast lawyer; James, the shy but brilliant medical student; his seductive, hard–drinking sister Audrey; and Teresa, youngest and most fragile, haunted by the fear that she has inherited the madness that possessed her father.

Their grandfather summons them to his mansion at Owl's Point. None of them has visited the family estate since they were children, when a prized painting disappeared: a self–portrait by Goya, rumoured to cause madness or death upon viewing. Afterwards, the family split apart amid the accusations and suspicions that followed its theft.

Any hope that their grandfather planned to make amends evaporates when Teresa arrives to find the old man dead, his horrified gaze pinned upon the spot where the painting once hung. As the family gathers and suspicions mount, Teresa hopes to find the reasons behind her grandfather's death and the painting's loss. But to do so she must uncover ugly family secrets and confront those who would keep them hidden.