The secretary of the Midsomer Worthy's writers' circle is found brutally murdered after objecting to a visit from a best-selling novelist.

Community spirit is running high in the village of Morton Fendle as many villagers have invested in the local craft centre, Morton Mill, owned by Alan Hollingsworth. However, the project is in financial ruin and DCI Barnaby is brought in to investigate, in what turns out to be a much more sinister case; Hollingsworth's wife has disappeared, a neighbour is murdered, and the vigilantes in the village want their money back.