Esme Quentin is devastated when her sister Elizabeth is beaten unconscious, miles from her home. Two days later Esme discovers that Elizabeth has a secret past.

Desperate for answers which the comatose Elizabeth cannot give, Esme enlists the help of her friend Lucy to search for the truth, unaware of the dangerous path she is treading.

Together they unravel a tangle of bitterness, blackmail and dubious inheritance, and as the harrowing story is finally revealed, Esme stumbles upon evidence of a pitiful crime.

Realising too late the menace she has unwittingly unleashed, Esme is caught up in a terrifying ordeal - one that will not only test her courage and sanity but force her to confront her perception of birth and family.

Esme Quentin’s arrival in north Devon is marred by the gruesome discovery of a fatally injured woman at the foot of Warren Cliff. Esme is troubled by the woman’s final words and curious about the old photograph clutched in her hand. The police, however, dismiss Bella Shaw’s death as accidental.
But Bella’s daughter, Neave, has her own questions and approaches Esme for help. The subsequent trail leads Esme back to the brutal penal history of 19th century England and the mystery of a Devon convict girl transported to Australia for her crime.
As evidence of betrayal and duplicity are revealed, Esme discovers Bella’s link to events in the past – a link which now endangers Neave and, by association, Esme.
A legacy of hatred which has festered for generations in the 'land beyond the seas' now threatens to spill over on to Devon soil with devastating consequences.

THE DEEPEST SHADOWS HIDE THE DARKEST TRUTH

Esme Quentin is reminded of a painful past when Max Rainsford,a journalist colleague of her late husband Tim, turns up unannounced asking about a story Tim reported on thirty-five years ago – the murder of an old soldier. Esme, wary of Max’s motives, declines to get involved.

Meanwhile, Esme’s friend Ruth, prompted by WWII anniversaries, wants to solve the mystery of Vivienne, her mother Bea’s sister, a wartime nurse who never came home. Despite Bea’s disapproval, Ruth is convinced the truth will finally help Bea come to terms with her loss and asks Esme to investigate.

Esme unpicks the threads of Vivienne’s past and stumbles upon a disturbing connection, linking the old soldier’s murder to her own distressing past and her late husband’s fate. As events unravel, Esme realises that to uncover the secrets behind Vivienne’s story, she must also confront the terrifying truth behind her own.

TWO FAMILIES HAUNTED BY A SINISTER PAST
When Esme Quentin is engaged to research the history of an ancient mill owned by her client, Anna Brannock, she stumbles upon a bitter family feud, tales of witchcraft and a century-old allegation of murder.
As Esme digs deeper, the past begins to converge on the present, when Anna becomes
the target of a disturbing campaign, echoing menacing events from many years before.
Can a 19th century curse still wield its formidable power? What connects Anna with the 24 year-old mystery concerning the whereabouts of the charismatic Ellen Tucker?
Esme must uncover the truth to save Anna from becoming a 21st century victim, in a cruel repetition of her ancestor’s merciless fate.

WHEN OBSESSION FROM THE PAST IS UNLEASHED IN THE PRESENT

The discovery of a 100-year-old murder in a client’s family history leaves Esme Quentin bewildered by her client’s curious reaction.
But with no instruction to find out more, Esme instead turns her attention to clearing the dilapidated outbuilding at her new cottage. Amongst the junk she finds a 17th-century map associated with the name Chalacombe, a local family with an intriguing and mysterious history.
As Esme begins to unpick the threads of the family’s story, she is plunged back to a time when lawlessness ruled the high seas and piracy was rife.
The arrival of an unwelcome visitor raises questions which Esme cannot answer, and in a desperate search for the truth, Esme stumbles upon a bizarre and disturbing crime.
Has she inadvertently uncovered a link between the Chalacombe family’s enigmatic past and the 100-year-old murder? But who might be threatened by such a revelation now, in the present day? Who has got the most to lose?