“Had me turning the pages faster and faster …” —Paul Morgan, author of The Winter Palace and Turner’s Paintbox.

Scientist Dr Chen Du is poisoned in his lab at the Badeker Institute, where he is researching wheat. There have been protests from Green groups outside the Institute demonstrating about GM or “frankenfoods”.

Investigating the death are Detective Inspector John “Winner” Nguyen with Sergeant Graham Brothers and young Constable Carol McTeish, fresh from their work on The Millennium Job.

The Director of the Institute, Dr Olga Penrith, is desperate to sign a further deal with major Baltimore-based pharma Howarth-Acfield. The company has already funded one of the two research teams, but not Dr Chen’s, who wanted his work to be in the public domain.

The investigation reveals turmoil in Dr Chen’s personal life, and a suspicious photographer amongst the Green protesters …