Glasgow 1492. Gil Cunningham remarked later that if he had known he would find a corpse in the university coalhouse he would never have gone to the Arts Faculty feast. In this mysterious adventure Gil Cunningham returns to his old university for the Nicholas Feast where he & his colleagues are entertained by a play presented by some of the students. One of the actors William Irvine is later found murdered & Gil assisted by Alys begins to disentangle a complex web of espionage & blackmail involving Williams tutors & fellow students. Matters are further complicated by the arrival of Gils formidable mother who is determined to inspect his betrothed. Little do Alys & Gil realise that it will be she who provides the final vital key to unmask the murderer & lay his motives clear.