Beautiful Kate O Dwyer, a young Irish hitch-

hiker, claims to have met Rosemary Law-

rence s daughter Emma abroad. She descends

upon Rosemary s sleepy little Norfolk village

--and upon her house. Rosemary is a little

put out, but, after all, Kate is Emma s friend

and a sweet young girl.

Young Kate becomes an anarchic presence

in the village, drawing men and women alike

to her with her innocent aspect. But when old

Ben Pearce is found dead, apparently

drowned in a local stream, and he leaves a

will and more money than anyone thought he

possessed, Rosemary begins to suspect that

her houseguest is far from innocent. And octo-

genarian Dilly Thomas, cannier than she

seems, is convinced that there has been foul

play.

The discovery of Ben Pearce s will puts

several people s plans awry. And when the

murderer s final scheme goes disastrously

wrong it destroys someone far more important

to them than the intended victim