In post-war Flanders, Adelais de Wolf's family is unraveling: her mother increasingly consumed by religious fervor, her father by alcohol. But when her beloved uncle dies, Adelais finds herself in receipt of an unexpected legacy: a shuttered house in a rundown district and its contents hold the promise of independence and wealth, if she is willing to break the law. Adelais stifles her doubts and her fortunes are transformed. But with her rise comes complications: her victimless crimes may not be as victimless as she supposed. Nor has she counted on the singular fanaticism of a brutal detective who never forgives and never forgets. Caught in a dangerous game of cat and mouse, will Adelais find that her new life comes at too high a price?

 Philip Gray (