Charles Mossop Libri

The story unfolds as Detective Inspector William "Bill" Foy, recently retired, investigates the murder of his archeologist nephew. His inquiry centers on a mysterious oracle bone from China's Bronze Age, believed to be pivotal to the case. As Foy delves deeper, he navigates a tangled network of murder, corruption, art theft, and smuggling, aided by two young assistants and an Oxford professor. The investigation reveals a ruthless international crime syndicate with roots tracing back to the fall of Nazi Germany, complicating the pursuit of justice.

Following the murder of his friend, Dr. Michael Stuart, George Randall, mild-mannered professor of History, finds himself caught up in a dangerous race to uncover the killer's identity and find the solution to an eight-hundred-year-old mystery surrounding the disappearance of a priceless royal treasure. Randall's search takes him from England to Italy, Austria and Germany as he is confronted by a tangled riddle reaching back from the thirteenth century to the final months of the Second World War. Randall employs his research skills as well as deception and fast footwork as he searches for an ancient manuscript that holds within its illuminated pages the secret of a treasure long thought lost. In spite of attempts on his life and the lives if his daughter and his fiancee, Randall remains determined to unravel the secret and find his friend's murderer.