Lawyer, gambler and people-finder Jack Irish is trying to find out who got away with the proceeds of his syndicate's latest betting coup when he is hired to look for one Robbie Colburne. But he has barely started when the part-time barman is found dead of a drug overdose. Case closed, Jack thinks, but the client wants to know more - a bad mistake, since it turns out that Robbie was far from what he seemed.
As Jack unravels the young man's past, he finds himself drawn into a deadly network of power, politics and money. In this world, nothing can be taken at face value and everyone is expendable.