Joshua 'Intrepid' Speedwell is a young adventurous plant collector in the 1880s when horticulture became a Victorian obsession and naturalists were sent to the far corners of the globe in search of rare species to satisfy the public appetite. But Mr Speedwell is also an agent extraordinaire for a clandestine society whose valiant members, in the guise of plant hunters, secretly seek to maintain a balance of power at a time of The Great Game, the complex rivalry between 19th-century British and Russian empires. As Joshua awaits orders for a return mission to central Asia where tensions are running high, he takes a short break in England, only to be embroiled once more in unexpected intrigue as he comes upon a mysterious plot involving botanical shenanigans at the highest level. As time runs out, and armed with only his trusty botanist's knife, three handkerchieves and his favourite boots (from Penstemons, Royal Leamington Spa), he is called upon to use all of his unique survival skills to expose the miscreants and save the government from international scandal.