'He felt as though he were on the brink of achieving a perfect understanding; that just outside his reach was something infinitely precious, a happiness of a magnitude he had not known existed.'

Mervyn Walkinshaw is a successful barrister whose career is going from strength to strength. He appears to have it all, yet his life is marred by dissatisfaction and restlessness. An encounter with a young woman facing drugs charges turns his emotional life upside down and, as his professional life unravels, he must decide what really matters to him.

From the defendant who is accused of breaking the law, and whose guilt or innocence must be decided, to those whose livelihoods depend on him, policeman, barrister, and judge, the whole panoply of the criminal justice system is here. The drama unfolds and the seemingly disparate worlds of the characters collide in an intense and troubling climax.