When Juno Browne purchased a car for her lover, Daniel Thorncroft, she was not expecting that the previous owner would lock a dead body in the boot. Who the dead man could be is a persistent question, as is the whereabouts of the seller, Amber Horrell. While Inspector Ford and the Ashburton police are on the case, Juno's insatiable curiosity and concern for the missing Amber lead her to start sleuthing on her own. It turns out that the Horrells, Amber's family, are notorious in this corner of Devon, with an ancient murder and vanishing red diamond in their past and a shady antiques business very much in their present. With a second murder, Juno's involvement in the investigation becomes more complicated and the line between reality and fiction also become blurred. But the truth, she discovers, is far more complicated than it seems.

Stephanie Austin has enjoyed a varied career, working as an artist and an antiques trader, but also for the Devon Schools Library Service. When not writing she is actively involved in amateur theatre as a director and actor, and attempts to be a competent gardener and cook. She lives in Devon.