In this British mystery, a Scotland Yard detective follows a deadly trail from the Isle of Man to the South of France to solve a movie star’s murder. The glamour of Hollywood has descended upon the Isle of Man. But behind this glossy façade, something sinister stirs. Superintendent Littlejohn thought he was in for a few days’ holiday, but when the depraved movie star Hal Vale is found dead in his hotel room, Littlejohn is called to investigate. As motives and rumors abound, this star-studded pursuit reaches from London and Dublin to the French Riviera. With the help of his old friend, Inspector Dorange of the Sûreete ́ at Nice, Littlejohn follows the trail from the sensation headlines to the industry’s shadowy tycoons.

A British detective goes undercover in the South of France to investigate a suspicious death in this twisting mystery. A British ministry official wants Inspector Littlejohn to look into the death of his brother and sister-in-law who were killed in an automobile accident outside a small village in southern France. Though the French police ruled it an accident, the official isn’t satisfied. Something seems wrong. With no jurisdiction in Provence, Littlejohn must investigate unofficially. So, he and his wife decide to vacation in the area. Soon witnesses start disappearing, the couple discovers they’re being followed, and the local marquis tells Littlejohn that it may be time to go back home. But the detective isn’t going anywhere until he solves the deadly mystery that reaches back to a shooting incident from before World War II.