When Augusta Lockwood and her friends form a society to investigate crime, they don't have long to wait before a murder falls into their laps. A disappearing gardener and the discovery of a gruesome crime scene launch a series of mysterious events that soon engulf even the bravest of the amateur detectives in danger.

Meanwhile, in the wake of an attempted burglary, Augusta takes a new lodger into her home. But the presence of the enigmatic Mr. Julian Hawksworth quickly proves to be anything but reassuring. Worse, with the recent death of her physician father, Augusta has old family secrets to unravel, a tangled thread that could lead her to truths she is unprepared for.

With so many mysteries surrounding them, will Augusta and her society friends survive long enough to shine a light on the shadowy threats closing in?