When workers at a vast peat extraction site in the bleak and tortured landscape of the Irish midlands uncover a long-buried, badly damaged corpse, they call in pathologist Nora Gavin. The body has apparently been strangled, slashed and drowned -- the ritual 'triple death' of Ireland's blood-soaked pagan past. But moments after Nora arrives a much more recent victim is discovered. Like the ancient body, this new corpse seems to have suffered the triple death ...Nora and her lover, archaeologist Cormac Maguire, must team up professionally once more. Soon they are enmeshed in a web of tangled desires and terrible secrets. The danger mounts, fuelled by rumours of ancient gold, illicit liaisons and long-delayed revenge. Though they do not realise it, Nora and Cormac have come far too close to the truth -- placing them in ever-greater danger of becoming a ruthless killer's next victims.