Christopher, fifteen years old, is an extraordinary thinker. He’s exceptional at maths and observes things nobody else sees. Everyday life is a little trickier – he has never ventured alone beyond the end of the street, he detests being touched, and he’s wary of strangers.

Now he’s in the front yard, it’s seven minutes to midnight, and Mrs Shears’ dog is lying dead at his feet, a garden fork in the neck. He’s going to be the chief suspect, isn’t he? So who can solve the mystery? Nobody but Christopher, and what he uncovers takes him on a journey that even he couldn’t have predicted.