since its inception, the judge deborah knott series has garnered all the top mystery prizes and received overwhelming accolades. now margaret maron presents an engrossing tale of southern arts and sudden death . . . north carolina's randolph county is heavy with bright red clay and home to generations of skilled potters. two of the best are james lucas nordan and sandra kay hitchcock, locked in a bitter divorce after twenty-five years of marriage. enter judge deborah knott, who must settle the most exasperating part of any divorce case--the equitable distribution of marital property. as creative as it was stormy, the nordans' marriage produced great artistic achievement that continued the legacy of james lucas's father and proud clan patriarch. old amos norton is no stranger to tragedy. two years earlier, his more talented son, donny, committed suicide . . . in a manner so scandalous that amos still can't bear to speak of it. suddenly, amid the petty bickering, an even more gruesome death strikes the nordans again. violence stalks the family homestead as the sins of the past catch up with the nordan family. judge knott knows she must summon all her considerable insight into the darkest entanglements of the human heart, if she is to stop a malevolent killer well-crafted in the art of murder.