On a bleak night in 1916, news breaks of a pit disaster. The next morning a woman is discovered on a colliery spoil heap, at the edge of exhaustion, bewildered - tortured by her thoughts.Sheffield court missionary, Robert Elliott, and his friend, Professor Tom Sharpe, are mystified by the case notes of 'MARION'. Their unique blend of logic and insight should have provided all the answers, but for each puzzle that they solve, another appears to take its place.In nearby Haddington Hall, baronial home of the aristocratic Warsop family since the 1700s, shocking secrets lurk beneath the veneer of respectability. Pitting their wits against a noble family twisted by vengeance and malice, Elliott and Sharpe may have found the key to the mystery when they discover a notorious book in the Hall's ancient library.