Garret Quirke, a pathologist in 1950s Dublin, suspects that his adopted brother, Malachy Griffin, tampered with the corpse of a young woman, Christine Falls, to conceal the cause of death. As he investigates, he begins to uncover a scandal that involves the pillars of Dublin's Catholic society as well as his own family's secrets. Quirke, a pathologist in 1950s Dublin, suspects that his adopted brother, Malachy Griffin, tampered with the corpse of a young woman, Christine Falls, to conceal the cause of death. As he investigates, he begins to uncover a scandal that involves the pillars of Dublin's Catholic society as well as his own family's secrets.