Following the murder of his wife by notorious gangster Webster, Inspector George Gently is pondering retirement. When he hears about Webster attending a funeral of a murder victim, he delays his retirement to take on this case.
After an unidentified badly burnt body is found near an RAF base in 1964, Gently works alongside Special Branch officers who suspect the victim was involved with the IRA.
When the beaten body of wealthy German businessman is discovered in the harbour, Gently and Bacchus are forced to consider whether a barman's anti-German sentiments are a motive for murder.
