The mysterious, enigmatic Seraphin Monge, having avenged the horrific murder of his family, has vanished as abruptly as he appeared. His brief sojourn in the village of his birth has touched the lives of the villagers, and he is much mourned by the women who claim to have been in love with him. But is Seraphin dead or alive? If so, how to explain the ghostly visions and declared sightings of him, the powerfully vivid memories or the miraculous events for which he is seemingly responsible?

Dead, if that is what he is, Seraphin appears to be infinitely more present that he was in his lifetime.

Ranging over half a century, this is a self-contained sequel to the author's prize-winning novel, The Murdered House.