Disillusioned with her work at MI6, spy Sylvia Fox travels to Italy for the wedding of her niece. Although her relationship with her sister, Isabel, is troubled, Sylvia is welcomed warmly by her family. But when the groom goes missing, leaving a dead woman behind, Sylvia feels compelled to investigate. The trail leads her from an empty pizza box and stolen children's book to a deadly showdown.

Sylvia helps out on an archaeological dig at the Castello di Monterosa, and finds a skeleton buried in a shallow grave.

When Sasha Pavlenko, the son of a Russian politician is arrested in Rome for the murder of a fellow-student, Sylvia's ex-husband and ex-colleague Adam asks her to investigate.