Three Pines is a village just above the U.S. border where everybody knows everything about each other until now. Everybody in Three Pines is shocked when their favorite local bistro becomes the scene of a devastating crime. A stranger's corpse has turned up there, and Chief Inspector Gamache is called to investigate. But no one can believe it when Olivier, the owner of the bistro, becomes a suspect: Why does every lead in the investigation find its way back to him? And what other secrets and lies are buried beneath the surface.