Nora Roberts plunges into the exotic and decadent world of antiques with a story in which possession is a lethal obsession and a simple mistake leads to a string of savage murders. At its swirling center is Dora Conroy, a Philadelphia antiques dealer who buys a curious selection of auction items - objects she considers humorous novelties for her inventory. Yet it soon becomes obvious that this merchandise is a magnet for something sinister; in fact, her genteel antiques shop becomes the focus of an international smuggler whose passion for beautiful objects knows no bounds. As Dora and her intriguing upstairs tenant, former cop Jed Skimmerhorn, probe into the robberies and deaths surrounding the mysterious shipment, they discover a shadowy path leading across the continent to the smuggler, a man who will stop at nothing to regain his hidden riches. Dora and Jed find that they, like the treasures the man craves, are susceptible to his crushing grasp.