Lord Charles Sheriden is convinced that an inmate at Dartmoor Prison, Samuel Spencer, who confessed to killing his wife, is innocent. Although Spencer maintains his guilt, Lord Charles, his wife Kate, and acquaintance Arthur Conan Doyle delve into the mystery.
"A sentence to Dartmoor Prison is a sentence to a living hell..." Lord Charles Sheridan and his American wife, Kate, have heard some truly awful things about Britain's most notorious prison. But Dartmoor and its mist-shrouded environs hold special appeal for both Sheridans. Kate hopes to find inspiration for her new Gothic novel, while Charles plans to implement a fingerprinting program at the prison--and arrange a meeting with one of its most infamous inmates, Samuel Spencer. He's convinced that Spencer--a Scotsman who admitted to killing his wife--is, in fact, innocent. What's more, he believes he has the evidence to prove it. But Spencer continues to maintain his own guilt--and, as if to confirm it, he soon stages a daring prison escape. Lord Charles and his acquaintance Arthur Conan Doyle are most perplexed by this odd turn of events. And when a body turns up on the moor, it's up to the two men--and the clever Kate--to discover if the missing convict is connected to this murderous new case...