"We never know how we go, -- when we are going We jest and shut the door; Fate following behind us bolts it, And we accost no more." -- Emily Dickinson Like Atkinson's other Jackson Brodie novels, this one is an intertwined story that will take erstwhile private detective Brodie into rural Devon, Scotland and into the lives of various interesting characters, like 16-year old babysitter Reggie who is the only one concerned that her beloved employer had gone missing with the baby; a chief inspector investigating cases of abuse; drug dealers; irascible teachers; and a dog. There's also a train crash and a gruesome murder 30 years ago, witnessed by a little girl. It's a lot of plot threads but Atkinson cleverly weaves them together to form a spellbinding and coherent story.