Under cover of a blizzarding Burgundy December, a French Jack the Ripper is at work. Chief Inspector Evariste Clovis Désiré Pel is disturbed by the less than festive happenings; though if Christmas gets cancelled not all is bad in his mind.

It is only when some of his team's own kin are subjected to the violence that the investigation takes a personal spin. Pel and his flics must pit their wits against the mind of a madman, or risk losing the ones they care for most.

Moody, sharp-tongued and worrying constantly about his health, Inspector Pel ensures that no case goes unsolved, in these mordantly witty French mysteries.