With his parents-in-law visiting for the holidays, DCI Barnaby is almost relieved to be called out when Lydia Villiers claims she was pushed down the staircase. When she dies, the police have a possible murder case on their hands. The Villiers family has re-united for Christmas including a long lost brother, Ross, but there are many secrets in the house. One subject that is not talked about much is the suicide of one of the siblings, Ferdie, nine years previously. Several of the young adults in the house, children when their uncle took his life, have memories of the incident. When the police learn that Ferdie's fiancée also committed suicide soon after his death, they have a better understanding of who might be seeking revenge.