Henry Kent has been looking for someone. He's in late middle age, living isolated an a dank houseboat. Without means, perhaps, but not without charm. All his life, Henry has got by on charm. When Daisy Langrish buys a nearby cottage, Henry's antennae are immediately alerted. There's definitely an air of vulnerability about her that he would like to explore. How shall he do it? Start by making himself indispensable, look after her cottage and tend her garden while she's away working. He'll be interesting, attentive, kind. He knows all women love kindness. He's on familiar territory. But there's something about Henry, something not quite right, that arouses the suspicions of Daisy's daughter, Katya, and she begins to investigate Henry's past.