Despite suffering a life-threatening illness after rescuing a young girl from the River Dee, Detective Constable Dominic Strider of Chester CID still gets tangled-up in the hunt for a serial killer stalking students in the medieval city. He also clashes with a nasty new police chief, uncovers an international sex slave scandal, probes a spate of mysterious disappearances, and makes a most tragic discovery. It seems Strider's convalescence in the run-up to Christmas is anything but relaxed!