Thomas De Quincey, best known for his sensational memoir Confessions of an Opium Eater, is the prime suspect in a series of horrific murders that paralyze London. The killer seems to be imitating De Quincey's true-crime essay "On Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts." Desperate to prevent more atrocities but crippled by addiction, De Quincey is aided by his brilliant daughter, Emily, and two determined Scotland Yard detectives.