Brandon Monkford is found dead on top of a statue created by womanizing artist Lance Auden at the grand opening of Brandon's sculpture park. Suspects abound as his wife Alexandra was having an affair with art critic Daniel Fargo, the park would mean an end to his daughter Rachel's climbing centre and villagers led by Brin Dunne opposed the park on environmental grounds. The person with the most to gain, however, is Brandon's groundsman Tony Pitt, the sole beneficiary in his will, who annoys everybody - including his wife Summer - with his decision to carry on Brandon's vision and who predictably becomes the next victim. When a third corpse is found, like the others attached to a statue in the park, Barnaby must discover who is, literally, practising a dying art.