The town of Upper Middle Canterbridge-upon-Avon-by-the-sea is a quiet one, hardly touched by the nineteenth century as a whole, let alone the twentieth. The town's main and only industry is fishing, and it is this which provides the townspeople with their livelihood, and a large proportion of their diet. Everyone knows everyone else, strangers are frowned upon and crime is unheard of. All in all, it's a pleasant place to raise children, if you don't mind seafood.
However, the peace enjoyed by the denizens of this tranquil village has just been shattered. The town's mayor, an excellent fisherman and beloved by all, has been found viciously murdered in his own home. Crudely daubed in blood on the wall of his office, there is a rough drawing of a cloak and dagger. The town is on, if you forgive the pun, a knife-edge. Who is to blame?
Old rumours have resurfaced of a secret "Guild of Assassins" operating in the town. What was long thought to be an old wives' tale, used to scare children into eating their fish and suchlike, has become a terrifying reality. The usually friendly town is turning into a hotbed of rumour and distrust. Some have locked themselves in their houses, others talk openly of lynchings and vigilante justice. Yet more have placed their trust in an even more mythical group, the so-called "Illuminati".
These Illuminati, supposedly the spiritual descendents of the famous Knights Templar, are an ancient organisation, seemingly dedicated to ridding the world of the Assassins. Their true goal mysterious, their methods even more so, are these enigmatic individuals to be welcomed or to be feared? Are they acting in secret, are they merely biding their time, or are they nothing but a fairy story? It seems only time, and the blood of the citizens of Canterbridge, will tell.