Inspired by a handwritten note from his idol, Frank Lloyd Wright, Merlin Richards sets off from the Welsh valleys to the Arizona desert to launch his architectural career. Nowhere in Wright's note does it say anything about murder.

Chasing his dream, Richards arrives at the building site of the Arizona Biltmore hotel, where he meets a beautiful young designer named Rosa Lustig. Like every other man in her circle, Merlin is captivated . but only several hours later, he is the prime suspect in Rosa's murder.

Jealous suitors, envious workers, and the cynical police are all convinced that Merlin is a killer. He begins to put the pieces of the puzzle together; what he builds is not the impressive edifice he came to learn about, but a defence that will imprison a murderer.