Surrounded by dense, dark woodland, the Hermitage is an exclusive girls' school on the shores of Menai Strait. On a balmy summer night, Sukie Melville is lured into those woods and murdered. Superintendent Michael McKenna, struggling to find the killer, is caught in the turbulent undercurrents of school life, all the while deceived by the silent conspiracies fostered by the charismatic headmistress, Freya Scott.  The Hermitage girls appear to have everything, but the aura of beauty, wealth and privilege hides shattered dreams and bitter memories, especially among the victim's old friends in the elite sixth form. Did someone hate her so much she had to die, or love her too much to let her live? As McKenna scratches the glossy surface, he finds that nothing in the hotbed of passionate, brooding resentments is what it seems, and no one can be trusted.