When Marion Slade is found dead on the first day of Midsomer Barton's Oak Apple Week, DCI Barnaby and DC Jones investigate, but was it suicide or murder? As the investigation progresses, Barnaby is shaken by the appearance of two villagers who look just like murder victims from his past.

When council clerk Martin Barrett is murdered, DCI Barnaby and DS Jones soon discover that their victim was a notorious blackmailer. With no shortage of suspects, but no real evidence either, Barnaby finds himself investigating beyond the borders of Midsomer for answers.