Curle publishes his newest book - about an Edinburgh detective called Doug - inciting a letter from an anonymous admirer accusing him of stealing the murders she's committed. Fact and fiction become increasingly inseparable when a dead woman is found, murdered by the method favored by the serial killer in Curle's novel. For Detective Inspector Meldrum, Curle seems the most obvious suspect. Faced with a second murder and a darkening cloud of suspicion, Curle decides to take action.