Tom Ripley is quietly living a life of luxury at his chateau at Villeperce, and, as ever, is keeping one step ahead of the law — he has, after all, a past that would not bear too much close scrutiny... The fifth novel featuring the protagonist Tom Ripley finds the sophisticated and amoral American expatriate being harassed by David Pritchard, a fellow American whose boorishness marks him as something of Ripley's alter-ego. Inexplicably familiar with all the incriminating details of Ripley's past, Pritchard is determined to expose him. He shadows Ripley's every move, first spying on him at home in France and then following him to Morocco. Tensions build on the return to Villeperce as Pritchard sets out to locate a body Ripley would prefer remain hidden in a nearby river.

Guy Haines is travelling through Texas on a train when a stranger invites him to share a meal. But the stranger has a terrible plan. ‘You murder my father, and I’ll murder your wife’, he suggests. So begins Guy’s journey into a world of madness, lies and death.

Murder of a stranger or a relative, in a quiet English town or a crowded American city. It happens everywhere for all kinds of reasons. Short stories by some of the finest modern crime writers.

Tom Ripley detests murder — unless it is absolutely necessary. If possible he prefers someone else to do the dirty work; in this case, a victim of a fatal disease, with no criminal record, who will murder for a reward, in order to provide for his young widow and child.

Ripley wanted out. He wanted money, success, the good life — and he was willing to kill for it. This is the first novel to feature Patricia Highsmith's anti-hero, Tom Ripley.