Following unsettling exploits in the Auvergne, Reverend Francis Oughterard and his companions try to resume a life of moderate respectability. But the events have cast a long shadow and soon they find themselves once again in the grip of sinister repercussions. Who is the menacing blackmailer stalking a previous blackmailer and the bishop? Can the bishop survive the threat of being 'outed'? Why is there a body in the polyanthus bed and can Lavinia Birtle-Figgins be as dippy as she seems?