'The Bells and Plate Fix' is set against Cumberland's biggest horse races, the Carlisle Racing Bells and the Cumberland Plate. When a bookie's clerk is found face down in the River Eden, Inspector Armstrong believes there is more to his death than meets the eye. In 'The Kaiser's Assassin', Armstrong's holiday in the Lake District is disrupted when he is invited to meet Kaiser Wilhelm, who is visiting his friend, the 5th Earl of Lonsdale at Lowther Castle. A potent mix of characters leaves Armstrong feeling uncomfortable and as things threaten to spiral out of control over the following days, he faces a race against time to prevent a murder that will have repercussions across Europe.