In The Amethyst Box, a vial of incredibly potent poison goes missing on the eve of a wedding. The groom and the best man set out to find it and prevent its misuse. A man's unexpected but natural death in a hotel become more and more mysterious when we learn his obituary was printed before he died. In The Ruby and the Cauldron, a precious gem is lost then found then lost again...finding it will save one woman from shame but will condemn another. Finally, one of Inspector Gryce's first forays into police work is chronicled in The Staircase at Heart's Delight as he risks his life to solve a series of murders.