After a farmer is found decapitated, aristocratic Detective Inspector Lynly is assigned to the case with a resentful new partner, D.S. Barbara Havers.

Detective Inspector Lynley and Detective Sergeant Havers are drawn into the closed world of prestigious public school Bredgar Hall when a promising young pupil, Matthew Whateley, goes missing. Lynley brings Havers along, knowing that her frank, no-nonsense attitude will cut straight through the school's elaborate facades and archaic traditions. She seeks out Matthew's friend, Harry Morant, but is frustrated to find that that the school code prevents him from opening up to her – even when Matthew's dead body is discovered in a nearby churchyard. Lynley and Havers' investigation penetrates the heart of this exclusive institution and they uncover a Mafia-like society run by the school's élite sixth-formers. It is an underworld of drug taking and dealing, bullying and blackmail, a twisted reaction to the relentless pressure placed on the boys to fulfil the expectations of family and society. When Harry Morant disappears, the race is on to find Matthew's killer before he too is harmed. Guest stars included Bill Nighy as Lockwood, Martin Jarvis as Cowfrey Pitt and John Sessions as John Corntel.

After a playwright changes dialogue in her play just days before its opening, she is found brutally stabbed with other murders to follow.

Lynley and Havers investigate when the beautiful and deaf daughter of a Cambridge lecturer is found murdered. A post-mortem reveals that the victim was pregnant, and the police build up a picture of a promiscuous girl with a large number of admirers. It appears that jealousy is likely to be a factor in the case.

Once again Lynley's friends and family are involved in one of his cases. His friend Deborah St James (whose husband is crippled) gets very close to a country clergyman she meets at the National Gallery. When he is found dead, supposedly poisoned by accident, Deborah is anxious to get to the bottom of the death and calls in Lynley. It's a complex case, and in working to solve it Lynley and Havers improve their relationship.

The body of cricket star Kenneth Fleming is found in a burnt-out house, the victim of an arson attack. It Emerges that Kenneth has three women in his life - a lifelong patron and mentor, Miriam Whitelaw, his married lover, Gabriella Patten, and his childhood sweeheart and devoted wife Jeanne, any of who might be guilty.

Lynley and Havers investigate a case of kidnapping involving a left-wing MPEve Bowen, and a right-wingpublisher, Dennis Luxford. Luxford enlists the help of his close friend and criminal profiler, Helen Clyde who is also closeto Lynley, but betrayal lurks around every corner.

Lynley's Dreams come true as he returns to his ancestral pile to celebrate his engagement to the woman he loves. However, a brutal murder on the grounds of his idylic Cornish estate sheds new light on the Inspector and his surprisingly dysfunctional family.

The body of a young Asian man is found on a beach in the seaside resort of Balford-le-Nez. Havers finds herself with time on her hands as Lynley is on honeymoon, and decides to assist a friend in the investigation.