Wealthy, privileged Ilaria Cavendish checks into a luxury hotel in central London. Within the hour, her lover finds her submerged in a bath full of scalding water, dead. It looks like an accident, because no one went into the room with her and no one came out, but someone killed her all the same…

For DS Maeve Kerrigan the case is a welcome distraction from her worries about DI Josh Derwent, who is struggling with a difficult situation – but then disaster strikes. The only person who can help Josh now is Maeve. It's no longer will-they-won’t-they – this is a matter of life and death.