Douglas Moffat, retired biology master and avid birdwatcher, takes the local children for nature lessons on the island of Mina off the west coast of Scotland and one Easter Sunday they find a climber’s body. So opens this green mystery which takes place in Glasgow, New York State and Hackney. Neil Henderson, a rich American who was born on Mina, wants to own an eagle specifically from there. Arrangements are made to steal an egg. Greed and crime begets further trouble with sexual tension and tough drug dealers entering the mix.