An American oil company sends a man to Scotland to buy up an entire village where they want to build a refinery. But things don’t go as expected.

Police Inspector Renko tries to solve the case of three bodies found in Moscow’s Gorky Park but finds his attempts to solve the crime impeded by his superiors. Working on his own, Renko seeks out more information and stumbles across a conspiracy involving the highest levels of the government.

Radio host Alan Bird witnesses how an icecream van is attacked and destroyed by angry competitors. This leads him into the struggle between two Italian families over the icecream market of Glasgow.