Summer 1930 and Walter Bruce is told he has a terminal disease. With nursing care and an easier job he could have five more years. With neither he may not see out the year. But he's got a wife to keep - one too selfish and idle to be his nurse. When he finds out she's been deceiving him about her past for years he comes to a stark decision; if she won't take care of him he'll have to take care of her - for good. He plans her removal like one of the chess problems he loves. It will be the perfect murder; he'll get away with it and enjoy his last few years in comfort. But his carefully laid plans unravel, entangling him in a slowly closing trap where truth and lies become confused - Set in between-the-wars Liverpool, 'Stalemate' is a gripping tale of moral choices and terrible punishment.