The night before the ancient well-dressing tradition in the Derbyshire village of Castledale, the dressers work feverishly to get the displays finished in time. However, someone has got in ahead of schedule. One of the wells is already dressed... with a dead body.
Despite being determined not to get involved in the investigation into how Cora Parrish came to drown in the well, and concentrate instead on her day job as cafs manager at the popular local tourist attraction Charleton House, amateur sleuth Sophie Lockwood can't help being intrigued. From the victims of Cora's schoolgirl bullying to those wishing to conceal a murky past of their own, suspects abound. Distracted by the appearance of a handsome historian, and by the unexpected turn her colleague and best friend Mark's career takes, Sophie feels as if she is going round in circles, achieving nothing but stirring up the dirt.
Then a startling revelation on the local news leaves Sophie convinced she has cracked the case. But after a fractious confrontation and an encounter in a remote beauty spot, she realises that even Derbyshire's very own Sherlock can sometimes get things wrong.
Grab your hiking boots, we're heading deep into the stunning Peak District for coffee, cake and a country walk, with laughs, surprises and intrigue aplenty along the way.Includes three bonus short stories featuring old friends and new from the Charleton House Mysteries.