After a ram-raid smashes his Sheraton desk, Lovejoy has to look for new stock; he also becomes a hospital visitor.

Jim Leonard, Lovejoy's mentor, sets up a country house weekend for an elaborate con. Lovejoy involves Eric, Tinker and Jane, but finds out too late that he is also a victim.

Lovejoy and Jane go to Ireland in search of a Yeats painting. But two stolen pages from a medieval manuscript prompt another investigation.