A bad omen. A sign of sorrow. One for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl, four for a boy...
Detective Inspector Montague Pluke has always been superstitious, so when he sees a lone crow fly over the Crowther's home, he's sure death is waiting in the wings.
And it doesn't take long for Pluke's premonitions to become a reality: the naked body of a young woman is found in a Druid's Circle - a place thought by locals to be the site of black magic. Rumours circulate about human sacrifice and dark rituals, but Pluke's not convinced the murder was committed in the circle.
Trusting his intuition, Pluke returns to the scene of that first omen of death: the house of Cyril and May Crowther. And when two more victims perish in suspicious circumstances, Montague Pluke is ready and waiting to catch the killer...