Guy Sandys is a retired City financier, who has bought Midsomer Life magazine, almost as a hobby, and enjoys using its pages to publish sharp reviews of local businesses. The body of Charlie Finleyson is found in woods near Sandys's house, and suspicion falls on Sandys, as his wife Cristina had left him for Finleyson some years previously. Then Sandys himself is found dead in his Midsomer Life office, and Barnaby & Jones have to sift through the long list of people who might hold a grudge against Sandys.