Even though Agatha Raisin loathes amateur dramatics, her friend Mrs. Bloxby has persuaded her to support the local pantomime. Stifling a yawn at the production of Babes in the Woods, Agatha watches as the baker, playing an ogre, struts about the stage. Then a trapdoor opens, followed by a scream and then silence. Surely this isn't the way the scene was rehearsed? When it turns out the baker has been murdered, Agatha puts her team of private detectives on the case.